


Alibi

by xXdreameaterXx



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-20
Updated: 2019-08-17
Packaged: 2020-01-16 12:22:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 31
Words: 48,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18521443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xXdreameaterXx/pseuds/xXdreameaterXx
Summary: The Doctor is in need of a new girlfriend. Not because he feels lonely or his daughter needs a mother, but to finally shut up his nagging parents. Clara Oswald is looking for a man that will drive her stepmother insane, but a new relationship is not what she has in mind. Luckily, there’s an app for that, one that can provide anyone with the perfect alibi partner. Yet what neither one intended to do was to fall in love.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys and welcome back to my new fanfic :) I hope you will enjoy it! I have, however, made a little adjustment to the posting schedule and will be dropping a new chapter every Saturday and Wednesday. The reason is that I have final exams coming up and limited time to write at the moment. I hope you all understand :)

The coffee maker made the sound again, that specific, quite horrible gurgling sound that told John Smith he would have to buy a replacement soon. For a brief moment, he wondered when his life had become… well, exactly what his life was. Going to work, driving his daughter to school, replacing broken appliances. It seemed a tedious chain of uneventful incidents for a man who had once jumped at the chance of adventure, but before he could dive deeper into this bout of midlife crisis, his sister’s voice tore him out of his thoughts.

“Is the coffee done yet?! I don’t have all day!”

John rolled his eyes even though his sister couldn’t see it, but he still grabbed the mugs and headed back into the living room, deciding to get it over with. Truth was that a call or visit from his sister never boded well for him and even though a part of him loved her, there had always been a strange kind of sibling rivalry between them. It was like walking on a thin line between love and hatred.

He found Missy exactly where he had left her, sitting in her usual spot on the sofa in her impeccable purple suit, inspecting her fingernails in a casual manner. She looked bored and if Missy was bored, well, that was something to be avoided. Sometimes, his sister came up with the craziest ideas in her moments of boredom.

As he handed her the coffee cup with an inquisitive look, John asked: “Why are you here? You made it sound like a matter of life and death on the phone.”

“Mum and Dad are in their eighties,” Missy quipped, “everything that concerns them is a matter of life and death.”

John raised his eyebrows at her while he sank into his seat even though he really shouldn’t be surprised. His sister had never been especially tactful, a trait that unfortunately ran in the family, but recently, Missy had joked about their parents’ passing a little too often for his taste.

When John thought about family, the first thing that popped into his mind wasn’t exactly his own. The Smiths were a strange bunch, always had been, and his view had only improved after his own marriage. While their mother had always been gentle, teaching them kindness and love, John’s relationship to his father was strained at best and horrible at worst. Ray Smith was the kind of person, short-tempered and mean, that John hoped he would never become.

A few years ago, John and Missy had decided that their parents could no longer stay on their own in their big house up in Glasgow, so they had moved them to an assisted living facility in London, much to their father’s disapproval. Their mother, Elise, had actually been delighted at the prospect of seeing more of her children, but John felt a little guilty to admit that he hadn’t visited in a while, yet he had a feeling that Missy had.

“I went to the home the other day to make plans for their 85th birthday and we had a long and interesting chat,” Missy went on.

John’s eyebrows went up even further. There was something about the way Missy said it that he didn’t like at all. “So, um, what did they say?”

His sister shrugged. “Oh, well, the usual. How are you, how is Susie, will Lucy and I get back together and all of that.”

“ _Will_ you and Lucy get back together?” John enquired curiously. He had never actually pegged his sister as the marrying type, but when Missy had met a girl named Lucy Saxon a couple of years ago, both his sister and his view had changed. They had seemed perfect for each other and the announcement of their divorce a few months ago had shocked him.

“Don’t change the subject because I wasn’t the focus of their concern,” Missy replied sternly, once again avoiding the topic of her failed marriage. “They’re worried about _you_.”  
“Me?” John asked in surprise. He wasn’t aware that he had done anything recently that warranted concern. “Why are they worried about me? I have the same job at the hospital that I’ve had for twenty years, Susie is a straight-A student, the house has just been renovated. What is there to worry about?”

Missy tilted her head to one side and looked at him for almost a minute before she drew in her breath and continued. “They want you to find a new girlfriend,” she finally announced. “River died seven years ago and now that Susie is entering puberty-”

“I’m not entering puberty!” came a sudden voice from the next room.

John uttered a sigh before he turned his attention to his twelve-year-old. “If you have to eavesdrop, at least come and say hi to your aunt!”

A second later, a head appeared in the crack of the door and John spotted Susan’s dark, ruffled hair and bright smile as she looked at them. “Hello, Auntie Missy!”

Then, the head was gone as quickly as it had appeared and the door closed behind his daughter.

John sank deeper into his seat and finally took a sip from the coffee that had now cooled down a lot more than he would have liked, but he still felt his sister’s inquisitive gaze on him. Somehow, he should have known that Missy wouldn’t give up so easily.

“I don’t know why they’re making such a fuss about it. I’m perfectly capable of raising Susie on my own and I don’t have time for a girlfriend. I’m a doctor and a father, there’s just no space left in my schedule for a silly romance.”

Missy’s eyes lingered on him for a while longer and when she sighed at last, she sounded tired. “I know you’re capable, but now that Susie is a teenager, you do have a little more time. She no longer requires changing and spoon-feeding. And look at me, even I liked being married.”

That was a fact that still surprised John, but it wasn’t enough of a reason to make him rush into an unnecessary relationship just because his parents thought he couldn’t handle his daughter on his own. He and River had had a good marriage and he had grieved for a long time. Now, it wasn’t so much the grief that still held him back but the fact that he didn’t think he needed a woman in his life just for the sake of having a relationship. John preferred to wait until the right person came along rather than go looking for her. And right now, the thought of bringing a new girlfriend into the household just seemed like a complication rather than a nice addition.

“It’s not that I’m against having a new relationship, it’s just that I haven’t met a nice woman in a very long time and I don’t want to subject Susie to a string of failed dates. I can hardly pull the perfect woman out of a hat just to please our parents,” John argued.

His sister considered his response for a while and when a smile spread across her face, John knew that she was having another one of her really bad ideas. “Well, in that case, I think you need an Alibi.”

In reply, John frowned at Missy. “Thanks, but I’m not planning on committing any crimes.”

“No, silly, it’s an app!” his sister explained. “It’s like a dating app but for alibi partners. You know, in case you need to make your ex jealous or you need someone to bring to a company event or… a family birthday.”

Even the explanation wasn’t enough to lift John’s confusion. “Let me get this straight,” he continued. “You want me to find a fake girlfriend to bring to my parents’ birthday party just to make them shut up about it?”

Missy nodded.

“That’s insane!” John argued. There just wasn’t any reasonable logic behind it. Yet he pictured his mother’s face and he realised that it would probably make her happy to see him find love once more. The longer he thought about it, the less insane it actually seemed. But that didn’t mean he would do it.

“Just think about it, okay? Look at the app, see if there’s anyone you could pass off as your girlfriend.”

John didn’t want to even though the idea sounded almost tempting now, not that he would ever admit that in front of Missy. So instead, he merely glowered at her. “Why are our parents only bugging me about my love life? Why not you?”

Missy leaned back with a sigh. “Because I’m not over Lucy and it hurts to talk about it,” she replied in a way that sounded anything but convincing. Whatever had happened between Missy and her wife, John doubted that they would ever find out.

“Fine,” John muttered just to get Missy off his back, “I’ll check out that stupid app, but I’m not making any promises.”

From the grin that spread across his sister’s face, John could tell that she was pleased with the outcome of their conversation, but he would be damned if he made it a success for her. He would check out that app, but unless he found a woman who was actually perfect, he would never agree to this ruse even if it meant disappointing his parents.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys so much for the first lovely comments :) Now, I guess some of you are eager to find out Clara's part in this?

“I need to borrow Rory!”

In response to her admittedly rather spontaneous exclamation, her friend’s eyebrows shot up and an expression of disbelief spread over Amy’s face as the words hung in the air. The more time passed, the sillier it sounded even to Clara’s ears.

“I’m sorry,” Amy replied after a while, her voice wary at best and completely weirded out at worst, “he’s not exactly in the rent-a-husband business anymore. I made him give that up when we got married.”

“Oh, come on,” Clara pressed as she scooted a little closer to her best friend and completely ignored her joke. “Just for one evening.”

Still, Amy seemed anything but convinced. Not that Clara blamed her for it, but she really needed a boyfriend for one night and one night only. Rory was perfect. He was a gentleman, but also kind of dorky and awkward and very likely to cause an accident or two.

“I have an idea,” her friend retorted. When she put on a smile, it seemed rather fake. “Why don’t you tell me what the hell is going on first?”

Clara inhaled deeply and decided to just come out with it because otherwise, Amy would never agree and she needed her to. And if she was quite honest, all of it had been her grandmother’s idea.

* * *

**A few hours ago**

Her grandmother handed her a large cup of tea and Clara thanked her with a smile even though, after the news she had just heard, Clara didn’t feel like smiling at all. Today, she had received an invitation in the mail that she had never expected in a million years, an invitation that had completely ruined her day.

“Did you know about it?” Clara asked and squinted her eyes at her grandmother to determine whether she was lying to her.

However, her nan didn’t even attempt to. Instead, she merely nodded.

“Why didn’t you tell me?!” she demanded angrily. “Hell, why didn’t Dad tell me?! You’d think he would want to tell his daughter in person that he is getting married and not through a stupid invitation card!”

Clara threw a disdainful look at the white card that she had discarded on the table and for a moment, she wished she had the power to set it on fire just by looking at it. In her heart, she had always feared that one day, her father would grow tired of living in sin, that one day, Linda would make him marry her. Linda was the last person Clara would have picked for her father. He deserved better. And she certainly deserved better than to hear about the upcoming wedding through an invitation card.

“He wasn’t sure how you were going to react,” her grandmother tried to defend him. “He knows you’re not exactly… fond of Linda.”

“That’s because Linda is a bitch,” Clara snapped.

Her grandmother’s eyes widened at her word choice, but when a soft smile spread across her lips, Clara knew that in her heart, her nan agreed with her.

“Well, we knew this day would come eventually,” her grandmother said. “And it’s his choice. If Linda makes him happy, then we should accept it.”

“I am accepting it! What I’m not accepting is the way he decided to let me know,” she argued, once again glowering at the card.

Her grandma sighed heavily before she took a sip from her tea. “I agree. That wasn’t his finest hour. But you’ll still come, won’t you? Your father really wants you there.”

Growling, Clara nodded. “Of course, I’ll come,” she said, but then Clara thought of something and it almost made her change her mind. “Oh God, Linda is going to be all over me if I show up on my own again. She’s been badgering me about getting a new boyfriend since… well, basically a week after Danny died. This is going to be really, really great.”

Even if her voice hadn’t dripped with sarcasm, her grandmother still would have known how she felt about Linda’s constant attempts to set her up with anyone who was single and vaguely Clara’s own age. Just a few weeks ago, at a family birthday party, Linda had tried to set her up with her twenty-four-year-old nephew. Clara was still shuddering at the mere thought of it.  
“Why don’t you bring a friend?” her grandmother asked her. “If you show up in male company, Linda will think twice about attempting a new set-up.”

And just like that, the perfect plan popped into Clara’s head because, as always, her grandmother was right. All she needed was a fake boyfriend for the wedding.

* * *

Even after hearing her story, Amy didn’t seem entirely convinced. Quietly, she sipped her drink and pondered her answer while Clara waited patiently for her to say yes, she could absolutely borrow Rory for the evening.

“There is one flaw in your plan,” Amy said eventually and set the mug down. “Remember that Linda met Rory at your 30th birthday party and they had a very long conversation about her sciatic issues? I’m fairly certain your stepmother remembers that.”

“Don’t call her my stepmother!” Clara pulled a face at the mental image, but she had to admit that her friend was right. If Linda had met Rory last year, she would definitely remember him. With a sigh, Clara admitted to herself that her perfect plan wasn’t, in fact, a very good one.

“But I think I might have a different idea,” Amy said after a while, sounding thoughtful.

When Clara looked up, she spotted a strange expression on her friend’s face, one that told her she was thinking very hard.

“Well, what is it?” Clara wanted to know.

“It’s just something I read about recently,” her friend explained. “There’s this app called Alibi and if I understood it correctly, it’s like a dating app for fake dates.”

In a swift gesture, Amy pulled out her phone and started typing while Clara waited patiently for her to finish. An app for fake dating? That sounded a little shady in her ears, but she was willing to give it a shot just to get Linda off her back. She certainly wouldn’t sit through another party while listening to her _stepmother_ telling her that she would die single.  
Finally, Amy seemed to have found what she was looking for and handed Clara the phone with a bright smile. Looking at it, Clara spotted the app that seemed to be exactly what her friend had thought it would be.

**Alibi - An Evening In Good Company**

_You don’t want to attend your company’s Christmas party on your own? You are tired of being asked when you’re finally going to meet someone? Or maybe you just don’t want to go to the theatre all on your own? Don’t worry because you are not. Connect with millions of other singles out there and find the perfect alibi partner for a night - or maybe even more._

“That sounds perfect,” Clara noted immediately. It sounded like just the thing she needed. An alibi partner for just one night. Well, maybe two if the man she chose needed her for the same cause. But then, the doubt suddenly surfaced and she looked up to meet Amy’s gaze. “Are you sure they aren’t all creeps?”

Her friend shrugged. “I’d suggest talking to the guy beforehand. It certainly won’t hurt to look around a little. Plus, you might get invited to a nice company event if that’s what the other guy needs you for.”

Overall, this app sounded like an escort service - only that it was mutually beneficial and no one was actually getting paid. The longer Clara thought about it, the less weird it seemed because she knew that there had to be more people out there who were in exactly the same position. Single, not ready to meet a new love or those who were just too focused on their work to actually have a dating life. From time to time, Clara was sure that they would have to answer questions about their love life, questions they didn’t want to answer. Maybe, she would find a nice man on this app who she could pass off as her boyfriend for a night. And even if not, it was certainly worth a try.

Then, a mischievous smile spread across her face. “I’m going to find a guy that will really piss Linda off,” she determined. “You watch me.”

Her friend chuckled next to her. “I can’t wait to meet him,” Amy remarked. “Are you going for the punk rocker or the extremely intelligent nerd that will make everyone feel like an idiot?”

Clara grinned to herself as she unlocked her own phone to download the app. “I don’t want to decide beforehand. I’m just going to let the app surprise me.” She turned her head towards Amy, still smiling. “Let’s do some boyfriend shopping.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments, guys :) Now, will John decide to use the app or not?

When John Smith entered the building, the first thing he smelled was death and his nose wrinkled in an involuntary movement. He couldn’t even tell why he thought the assisted living facility smelled like it because, to his knowledge, no one had died here recently and it was one of the best facilities like this in London, but the odour clung to the walls and the carpet and it followed him until he had finally reached his parents’ apartment. After a loud knock, his mother opened the door and when she recognised John, a bright smile appeared on her face.

“Oh, you should have told me you were coming,” his mother greeted him in her usual cheerful manner. “I would have cooked something for you!”

John chuckled in reply. “That’s exactly why I didn’t call. I don’t want you to go through so much trouble just for me,” he said and held up the bouquet of flowers that he had brought.

His mother’s smile widened even more as she beckoned him to enter.

When he stepped inside the small apartment, John felt like he was coming home even though he had never actually lived here. Somehow, his mother had a rare talent for making him feel at home anywhere and he put it down to her spirit. The flat was always tidy, always homely and no matter what time he showed up, somehow, it always smelled like baked goods just as it had done in his childhood home in Scotland. His mother had been sad to leave their house behind, but he and Missy had gone through great lengths to pick the nicest home where their parents would have their freedom as well as the care they needed and his mother had made the best of it.

“Where’s Dad?” John wanted to know while his mother took the flower bouquet apart inside the vase to rearrange it in an even more beautiful manner.

“Oh, you know him, always on the move,” she said. “Right now, he’s playing cards with the other pensioners.”

Once again, John smiled. It was good to see that his parents were happy and doing well.

His mother ushered him into the living room where, a few minutes later, she served him tea and biscuits and even though he felt a little guilty for enjoying his mother’s mollycoddling, he still decided to accept it.

“So,” his mother began, eyeing him curiously, “first Missy, now you. Is something wrong?”

“Not at all,” he replied immediately. “I just thought I hadn’t seen you in a while and I have the day off, so I decided to come and visit.”

His mother smiled in response, obviously glad that he had thought of her, but it was accompanied by a hint of worry which reminded John of the very recent conversation with his sister. Over the last few days, he had decided that her idea was stupid. He couldn’t just go online and find a fake girlfriend to present to his parents even though it might please them, but the hopeful smile on his mother’s face suddenly made him reconsider.

“And how are you doing? Everything alright with Susan?”

John sighed. “Susie is the one thing I don’t have to worry about. She’s constantly bringing home As, she has friends that seem really nice. She said to say hi, by the way.”

For some reason, her mother ignored his statements, probably because she and Susan had spoken on the phone just last week and his mother already knew all of that. Instead, she threw him an inquisitive glance. “And what about your personal life? How’s that going?”

There it was, the subject he had hoped to avoid. John didn’t even know why his mother had suddenly decided to be interested in his love life, but he knew that it was bugging him more than it should. 

“Well, my job’s going well and-”

“I wasn’t talking about your job,” his mother cut him off. “I get that Susie and your work are your priorities, but there is more to life than that and you’re old enough to know that.”

John growled at her in return and even though he had hoped this visit would prove Missy’s theory wrong, it was doing the exact opposite. His mother wanted to see him in a new relationship.

“You and River were such a cute couple and I hate to see you waste so much of the love you could still give to someone else.”

“I’m not wasting anything,” he argued. “I like my life the way it is and I don’t need a woman around.”

“I know you don’t _need_ one. A woman isn’t a necessary appliance, but she could be a wonderful addition to your and Susie’s life. Your daughter is on the path to becoming a woman herself and even though you’re the best father she could wish for, there are some things you can’t help her with, some questions only a woman can answer her if you don’t want her looking it all up on the internet and maybe getting the wrong idea.”

“What do you know about the internet?” John asked in return, frowning at his mother.

“More than you might think,” his mother retorted, sounding a little cross. “I know you’re an amazing father to Susie and you would move the earth for her, but there are things you just don’t understand if you haven’t gone through them yourself. She will benefit from having a woman to talk to eventually and I know for sure that you will benefit from having one by your side because, you know, your daughter will grow up eventually. What are you going to do in six or eight years when she moves out?”

“Well, she could talk to Missy-”

“Who has all the maternal instincts of a cuckoo,” she said with a heavy sigh, obviously blaming herself for that. Then, she continued, her voice sadder than before. “It is my biggest wish that you’ll find love again because I think both you and Susie deserve all the happiness life has to offer.”

John leaned back in his seat and realised that his worst fear had come true. Missy was right. To make his mother happy, he would have to show up with a girlfriend for his parents’ birthday party.

* * *

“What are you up to?”

John slammed the lid of his laptop shut in a desperate attempt to hide his plan when he heard Susan’s voice behind his back. Quickly, his head shot around, but all he saw was his daughter giggling.

“Are you looking for your fake girlfriend?” Susan wanted to know, obviously amused by her father’s behaviour.

Yet John’s gaze darkened when he realised what was happening. “I told you not to eavesdrop,” he growled.

Susan ignored her father and instead, pulled up a chair to sit next to him. John didn’t even have the heart to protest when she reopened his laptop, revealing a rather sorry looking profile on Alibi that she immediately scowled at.

“Dad, you need a better profile pic,” Susan informed him, pointing at a photograph John had thought looked rather good. “You can’t just use one from the 90s.”

“Yes, I can,” he argued grumpily.

“You cannot,” his daughter determined and John didn’t even have time to protest when she reached for her phone and decided to take a new photo.

It took about five minutes of trying different poses and his daughter’s continuous reminders to smile or glower or frown at the camera when at last, she announced that they were done. However, once Susan had uploaded the photograph to his profile, it was John’s turn to protest. He opened his mouth when Susan cut him off before he had a chance to speak.

“We’re using this one,” she confirmed with a proud grin.

John growled at her in response. “You’re too much like your mother,” he retorted and turned his attention back to the screen, knowing that he didn’t stand a chance against his daughter in matters like these. Also, he trusted her judgement, but John still couldn’t help but wonder why Susan was helping him with this ridiculous plan.

“You’re actually on board with this?” John wanted to know. “You want me to trick your grandparents into thinking I have a relationship with a woman I met on a fake dating website?”

“You should probably leave that last part out,” Susan chuckled. “But yeah, why not? Missy said it would make grandma happy and I want to see grandma happy.”

“By lying to her,” he muttered. “I wasn’t aware I raised you like that.”

“It’s a little white lie, but I think it can be excused,” his daughter added and then pointed towards the screen. “Now, let’s focus on the important part. Let’s find you a suitable fake girlfriend.”

John glowered at his daughter and then at the screen, knowing that he had no other choice left now that Susan had his back. “You know, you’re not just like your mother. I think there’s also a lot of your aunt in you and that is not a compliment.”

“How about this one?” his daughter suggested, completely ignoring his latest statement and instead opening the profile of a redhead. “Donna Noble, early forties, looks nice.”

When John glanced at her picture, he had to admit that Susan wasn’t wrong about her assessment. Donna Noble indeed looked nice.

“Or this one? Jackie Tyler? She’s your age and seems-”

Susan had no chance of finishing her sentence when suddenly, a message popped up on screen and John bent forward to get a better look at what it was saying. He had only had this account for five minutes and somehow already attracted his first potential fake date by the name of Clara Oswald.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all your lovely comments, guys :)

Clara settled on the sofa next to her best friend and lifted the wine glass to her lips, taking a sip. After a long week of work and dealing with teenagers, Clara thought she had earned a quiet Friday night with Amy and a task that promised to be quite funny: finding her a fake boyfriend on Alibi. It was almost a bit like finding a real date online, but it didn’t come with the same pressure attached to it. It was only for one or two events and afterwards, she would never have to see him again.

“What do you think of the picture?” Clara asked, pointing towards the laptop screen on the coffee table.

Amy evaluated it for a while, but it wasn’t her voice that she heard first. Suddenly, Rory’s head popped up from behind.

“It’s cute,” he remarked with a shrug. “Bit revealing.”

“Married,” Amy reminded him sternly and with a soft punch in the shoulder. When she had turned her attention back to Clara, however, she nodded. “I agree with my husband. It’s really cute but isn’t the cleavage… a bit much for the audience? You might scare the nerds.”

She had to admit that her best friend had a point. Clara had created this account to find a fake boyfriend, not to scare potential men away and she had certainly not created this account to find a real relationship. So Clara opened the image tool and cropped the picture at her shoulders. “Better?”

“Much better,” Amy agreed. Then, a look of excitement spread across her face. “Now, let’s see some candidates. I’m dying of curiosity here.”

Clara wasn’t quite sure where to look first. Should she choose a couple of parameters like age and appearance and filter out any that weren’t suitable for the cause? Then again, Clara didn’t have a clear image in mind of what she wanted, so she decided to have a look at the newest users first. She only checked the box for gender and selected a reasonable radius around her area. The laptop calculated the results for a while before the website returned a list of almost a hundred recently registered users.

“That’s quite a lot!” Clara exclaimed immediately. “I wasn’t aware so many people were looking for fake dates. What happened to real dating?”

Amy shrugged next to her and pointed at the first guy on the list. “I don’t know but he seems cute.”

Unable to disagree, Clara opened the first profile and had a proper look at a guy named Harry who was undeniably gay which was probably the reason he was looking for a fake girlfriend. Other than that, however, he seemed a little too perfect. He was good-looking, around Clara’s own age and worked as a veterinarian.

“I’ve never come out to my father and since he was diagnosed with cancer and keeps asking about my love life, I’ve decided to grant him his dying wish of seeing me with a woman,” Clara read his profile out loud, suddenly remembering that she had never mentioned a reason why she was looking for a fake date. But right now, as they were focused on Harry, Clara decided that she would fix it later. She shrugged at the cute profile picture. “I doubt I’m going to drive Linda nuts with a nice, good-looking vet.”

“Unlikely,” Amy agreed. “Next!”

“Ew!” Clara uttered once she had opened the new profile and spotted the man with the greasy hair in the photograph. “Shampoo is a thing!”

“Next!” her friend demanded.

Once the page had fully loaded, Clara leaned back a bit and contemplated the man she was seeing on screen and she had to admit that she quite liked what she saw. Admittedly, he wasn’t what she had imagined, but then again, she hadn’t given the matter a lot of thought.

Amy leaned forward and started reading from his profile. “John Smith, fifty-eight years old, a widower and single father,” she stated. “Oh, he’s a doctor. How on earth does he not have a wife?”

“He’s quite handsome in an unusual way,” Clara remarked, her eyes still glued to the photograph of John Smith knitting his impressive eyebrows at the camera in front of a nice living room backdrop. Above all, it was his curly, silver hair that impressed her.

Her best friend chuckled next to her. “Clara Oswald, may I remind you that you’re looking for a _fake_ boyfriend, not a proper one? Don’t get all heart-eyed over this one.”

“No worries,” Clara reassured her. “The age difference is a bit much for a proper relationship, but… not to give Linda a nice scare. I’m messaging the silver fox!”

In a swift movement, Clara reached for the laptop and pulled it down on her lap to type out a message. John Smith was actually perfect for her plan. He was a reputable doctor and widower and probably a nice man, too, so there was nothing Linda could say against that. She would, however, implode over the fact that he was a lot older and already had a kid. Clara was determined to get him.

**Clara Oswald**

_Hello John,_

Suddenly, Clara paused as she realised she had no clue what to say to him. She could think of a way to approach someone at a bar or message someone on an actual dating website. But a fake date? Clara really didn’t know how to go about that. Then, she decided to just try the truth.

_I’m rather new to this website. To be honest, I only completed my profile today and went to look for someone to take to my father’s wedding. Your profile caught my attention and, depending on what you’re looking for in an alibi girlfriend, I would like to get to know you a little better._

_What do you say? Would you like to grab a cup of coffee and talk about the details?_

_Clara_

Proud of herself, Clara hit the enter button and sent the message, grinning to herself and hoping that the silver fox would reply because she could already imagine the look on Linda’s face when she showed up to the wedding with John.

“Do you want to look around some more?” Amy wanted to know.

Clara considered this suggestion, but eventually, she shook her head. “No, I think I’m going to wait for him to reply,” she said as she looked at the list once more. At first glance, none of the others looked like viable options to annoy Linda.

Her best friend opened her mouth and from the look on her face, Clara could already tell that she wasn’t going to like whatever Amy was about to say, but luckily for her, a message popped up on her screen and provided her with an excellent excuse not to pay any attention to her friend.

“He replied!” Clara noted happily and opened his message.

**John Smith**

_Hello Clara,_

_I was very happy to receive your message because I’m also looking for an alibi partner to take to a family event. I will probably be at home all Sunday, but I am on call and can’t really stray too far from the house. Would you like to stop by and talk about the details over a cup of coffee?_

_John_

“You’re going to go to his place?” Amy asked doubtfully as she raised her eyebrows in Clara’s direction.

Normally, Clara would have declined his offer and insisted on having a cup of tea in a public place, but there was something about John Smith’s face that she trusted. After all, he was a doctor and he had a kid.

“Yes,” she confirmed determinedly. Then, Clara turned towards Amy with a shrug. “On the off chance they’ll find my corpse later, you know where he lives.”


	5. Chapter 5

John really wasn’t sure how exactly it had come to this, how he had caved and agreed to find an alibi girlfriend just to make his mother happy. First, there was Missy - that part, John could understand because his sister could be a fountain of bad ideas at times. But his own daughter? That was something John hadn’t expected and he vowed to have a conversation with her about just that later.

Even as he sat in front of Donna Noble, only half listening to her extensive tale about a secretary job and a failed office romance, he wondered whether _this_ would actually please his mother. Because, in his heart, John had to admit that maybe, she was right. Maybe Susan would benefit from having a woman around, maybe he would be lonely once his daughter moved out of the house, but that didn’t change the fact that he had no girlfriend. John had had relationships before River, but after building a life with one person, it seemed… repetitive to try and recreate something he had lost. It seemed like a big effort for something that might not work out. But even for that, he needed to find someone first. Someone he could fall in love with, someone who got along well with his daughter. It seemed like an impossible task.

Donna’s excited voice suddenly brought John back to a more pressing matter - which was his task of finding an alibi girlfriend. Judging her solely by appearance, the woman in front of him would indeed make a nice partner. She was attractive, had a pretty face and John was sure that she would look lovely all dressed up for his parents’ birthday party. However, the number of words that came out of her mouth in a single minute was more than his nerves could take. Donna hadn’t even been here for fifteen minutes and John felt the intense urge to flee.

“I have no feelings for this guy anymore, but the way he keeps on rubbing his new relationship in my face makes me want to scratch his eyes out and he’s doing it purely because he thinks it’s bothering me.” For the first time since he had asked Donna to tell her story, she paused and eyed him expectantly, obviously waiting for an answer.

“Well, um,” John spluttered because he hadn’t really paid that much attention, “isn’t it bothering you?”

“No!” she insisted sternly. “But what about you? Why are you looking for an alibi girlfriend?”

When Donna looked him over, John suddenly began to feel a little insecure. He hated to be judged based on his looks and Donna was doing that just now. How on earth was he going to tell her that his parents would never actually believe they were in a relationship because she was the opposite of what he usually looked for in a partner?

“Actually, I’m trying to get my parents off my back, but-” he paused, unable to think of something nice to say. John decided to just go with the truth. “I don’t think we would be a good match. You’re quite different from my late wife and ex-girlfriends. I don’t think my parents would believe that we’re a couple.”

To his relief, Donna shrugged. “Honestly, you’re a little quiet for my taste as well.”

John blew the air out between his teeth, hoping that the second meeting of this day would be more fruitful.

 

An hour later, John sat across the coffee table from Jackie Tyler and by now, he was praying for his pager to ring or for Susan to come downstairs and rescue him from this extremely terrible experience. However, for once, his daughter seemed to have given up on eavesdropping because his idiotic self had told her to stay in her room. The more time John spent in the company of these women, the more he regretted his decision to follow Missy’s stupid plan. Above all, he finally understood why they couldn’t find a proper partner.

“I can’t believe that my ex-husband found a girlfriend before I found someone!” Jackie exclaimed angrily. “And she’s such a typical choice! She’s half his age and really cheap-looking. Probably thinks he’s loaded but she’s an unlucky gold-digger because that man will never be rich!”

John cleared his throat, already knowing that there was no way he could take Jackie to meet his parents. Instead of dropping the worry, they would resume worrying about his taste in women. “Maybe you should just accept that he has moved on,” John heard himself say. He wasn’t entirely sure where it was coming from, but after listening to Donna’s story for half an hour and now Jackie’s for twenty minutes, John had learned one thing: these women didn’t actually need an alibi partner. They just needed to let it go.

“The hell I will!” Jackie exclaimed. “He doesn’t get to move on before I have!”

“Well, too late because he clearly has.”

 

Once the door closed behind Jackie Tyler, John exhaled audibly and leaned against the front door. Why on earth had he allowed Missy and Susan to talk him into this madness when he had known from the start that it was a stupid idea? After meeting Donna and Jackie, John was convinced that he wouldn’t find a suitable person on Alibi that he could actually bring to his parents’ birthday party without either causing a family row or attracting their suspicion. He had always had a specific taste in women and there was no way his mother would believe he had changed that, there was no way he could convincingly pass off any of them as his girlfriend. There was only one thing John could do and that was to call off the entire thing and just subject himself to reassuring his mother time and time again that he was everything Susan needed and that he would worry about loneliness when his daughter had actually moved out.

John was just about to make his way towards the laptop and cancel the last meeting on today’s schedule, hoping that Clara Oswald wasn’t on her way yet. However, he hadn’t even made it into the living room when the doorbell interrupted his stride and he knew that he would just have to deliver the bad news in person. There was nothing wrong with that. He was allowed to change his mind.

Yet when he opened the door, John paused for a moment. There was no denying that the woman standing on his doorstep was Clara Oswald because he recognised her from the profile picture. What her photo hadn’t shown, and he hadn’t actually bothered to look up her age, was that she was quite a bit younger than he had expected her to be and that her photograph hadn’t actually done her justice. When Clara smiled brightly at him, John couldn’t help but notice that she was extremely pretty with large, brown eyes and an adorable nose.

“Hi, I’m Clara,” she greeted him in a friendly manner as she extended her hand towards him. “And I’m sincerely hoping that you’re not a murderer.”

A little lost for words, John shook her hand and he realised that since he had changed his mind, he would have to send her away. Somehow, the idea of that made him feel sad.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about being a bit neglecting with posting, but my upcoming exam is keeping me a little busy and I only remembered to post a chapter yesterday :D Oopsie!

Comparing the address of the house with the one on her note, Clara confirmed that she had found John Smith’s home and even though Amy had tried to convince her not to go alone or to meet in a public place, the neighbourhood somehow reassured Clara that John’s invitation was sincere. He lived in a very nice house right across the street from Lewisham Park and Clara didn’t even want to know what he had paid to have a view overlooking the trees and meadows. He really seemed to be a doctor and a successful one at that.

Even though she had formerly assumed that finding a fake date involved less pressure than finding a proper one, Clara had to admit that she was feeling a little nervous as she made her way towards the door and stuffed the note back into her pocket. She couldn’t even tell why that was because John had seemed quite nice in his messages, but the prospect of meeting him still made her stomach clench a little. To get over the nasty feeling of nervousness, Clara decided to get it over with and rang the doorbell.

She only had to wait for a short moment before the door opened and a tall man stared down at her. Clara found herself smiling. There was no denying that this was John Smith because she recognised the distinctive eyebrows and the impressive amount of silver curls on his head. Her choice had definitely been the right one, so Clara extended her hand towards him.

“Hi, I’m Clara,” she announced. When he hesitated to shake it, she racked her brain for something intelligent to say, something that would break the ice, but the only thing that came out of her mouth was: “And I’m sincerely hoping that you’re not a murderer.”

With a look of confusion on his face, John finally shook her hand and Clara wanted to punch herself for her own stupidity. That wasn’t exactly what normal people considered an icebreaker.

“Sorry,” she muttered quickly. “It’s just that… well, my best friend was worried because we’re meeting at your home and she kept saying you might be a creep or a killer.”

Oh God, Clara had messed it up. She should have just kept her stupid, nervous mouth shut.

Yet to her surprise, John started to laugh. “Murder wasn’t on my schedule until next Wednesday,” he replied. “You can tell your friend that.”

Clara laughed in return. John had her strange sense of humour, that was another box checked. “So, um, shall we go inside and talk about the details?” she asked, only now noticing that they were still standing on his doorstep.

“Actually-” he began and there was a strange expression on his face, something that looked almost as if he was going to send her away. However, it faded quickly and John put on a smile. “Sure, let’s go into my torture chamber.”

Clara frowned at him in response and it made John’s smile vanish instantly.

“Sorry, I was just trying to continue the creep _slash_ murderer joke from earlier,” he spluttered. “I don’t actually have a torture chamber.”

Chuckling, Clara stepped inside his house and she was immediately greeted by the cosy, organised mess of a single father. His home was cute and lovely, but she could tell that it lacked the touch of an adult woman. She also couldn’t help but notice the electric guitar propped up on its stand near the coffee table, but then her attention was drawn elsewhere. Clara only caught a brief glimpse of it on the staircase, but she recognised it for what it was immediately.

“Hello there,” Clara called out to the teenage girl in hiding. She doubted that her father had noticed. “You must be John’s daughter.”

Next to her, John spun around on his heels and followed Clara’s eyes to where the teenager slowly came out of her hiding place. His gaze darkened instantly. “Susie, we had an agreement!”

“Sorry, Dad,” the girl grumbled but waved at Clara with a smile.

Clara waved back and just as she turned around to follow John into the living room, she watched the teenager give her father a thumbs-up sign.

 

“How on earth did you notice she was hiding up there?” John asked her immediately while he busied himself with the coffee maker. “Seriously, I had asked her not to eavesdrop and I was so sure she had listened to me.”

Clara replied with a shrug. “Teenagers are sort of my area of expertise. I’m a teacher.”

John blew the air out between his teeth and she could tell that he was probably thinking about having a word with his daughter later today.

“Is your daughter in on the whole _find-a-fake-girlfriend_ scheme?” Clara wanted to know while John handed her a cup of coffee. She blew on it to cool it down while waiting for him to answer.

John sighed audibly. “She was the one who convinced me to do it,” he admitted. “Said she wants to see her grandmother happy and, well, my mother keeps saying her biggest wish is for me to find love again.”

“And you don’t want that?” Clara enquired curiously. When John hesitated to speak, she realised that she may have overstepped the boundaries. “Sorry, I know it’s none of my business.”

“No, it’s, um, it’s okay. I mean, we wanted to talk about the details, right?” he blurted out in response. Somehow, Clara got the impression that John felt just as nervous and oddly enough, his nervousness seemed to have a calming effect on her own. “I was married for a long time and now, I’ve been a widower for years. The two things that matter to me the most are my daughter and my work at the hospital. There just isn’t much time for other things, especially not meeting people and dating. You know what that’s like, don’t you? Meeting someone, getting to know them and when you realise they’re not right for you, several months have passed and you’ve wasted all that time and effort.”

Clara nodded. “I know exactly what that’s like,” she confirmed. “Which is why I’m waiting for love to come to me. I’ve done enough chasing in my twenties and I’m in no hurry.”

“That sounds like a healthy attitude,” John said with a smile. “But I’m assuming your parents disagree?”

The eye-rolling was a completely involuntary movement but when John laughed, she knew that he understood her perfectly. “It’s not even my Dad, he’s fine with my single life. It’s my stepmother. My boyfriend died a few years ago.”

Clara paused for a moment and she watched John’s expression change to one of sympathy.

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Thanks, but my stepmother isn’t big in the sympathy department and basically a week later, she started telling me about all those young bachelors she knew, started introducing me to the sons of her friends and she’s been trying to set me up ever since and it’s just… annoying,” Clara stated with a heavy sigh. “I’m enjoying being single. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. I mean, I have my job as a teacher which I find very fulfilling, I have my friends who I can always count on and I don’t need a man to be happy, but that’s not something Linda understands, so I was hoping to… give her a little scare.”

“A scare?” John wanted to know, raising his impressive eyebrows at her. That was definitely one of the traits that Linda would hate.

“Well, I don’t want to show up with just an ordinary fake boyfriend. I want him to be perfect, so that there’s nothing Linda can say about that, but I also want him to have one trait that will genuinely drive her mad with fury. You’re actually perfect for that,” Clara said excitedly. “You’re good-looking, you’re a successful doctor, you’re really nice and funny, but the age gap will drive Linda insane and she won’t be able to say anything about that because you’re perfect otherwise and that will make her _implode_.”

To her surprise, John laughed when, for a while, she had been afraid he wouldn’t be down for it once he knew her real plan. However, he seemed to genuinely find it funny.

“I like that plan,” he confirmed with a smile. But as soon as he had said that, Clara watched the expression on his face change once again and now, it looked almost like regret. “But I’m afraid I can’t help you with it.”

And just like that, her heart sank.

“Don’t get me wrong, I like you and I think my mother would have been so happy to meet you, but just before you got here, I decided that I just can’t do it,” John told her in a voice that was almost sad.

“Oh,” Clara uttered in surprise, but she couldn’t think of anything else to say. She was actually disappointed and she didn’t quite understand what was wrong when they seemed to be everything the other had been looking for.

“It’s not your fault, Clara, you’re a lovely woman, but I don’t really want to trick my mother in that way,” John admitted. “It’s just not who I am. My sister suggested it and my daughter was somehow on board, but it doesn’t feel right. I think I’d rather try again to explain to her that I’m happy on my own.”

Even though Clara understood where he was coming from and why he had decided against the idea, she felt a twinge of sadness. Up until a minute ago, she had thought she found the perfect alibi boyfriend. Good-looking, funny, sweet and with an age gap that would drive her stepmother insane, but as it turned out, John was a little too sweet. He didn’t want to be part of a ruse like this one.

“I get it,” she replied eventually. “Can’t say I’m not disappointed, but I get it. If it wasn’t for Linda, I wouldn’t even dream of doing something like this, especially not in your situation.”

Eventually, John managed to smile at her. “Thank you for understanding,” he said. “And I’m sorry I made you come all the way here for nothing.”

“Ah, don’t be silly.” She made a dismissive hand gesture. “You gave me coffee in return, so I’m good.”

When Clara chuckled once again, John’s smile turned sad and somehow, Clara couldn’t help but feel like he was actually sorry to turn her down. If the circumstances were different, they would have made the perfect alibi match.

“Well, I should get going,” Clara determined as she rose to her feet. “Good luck with your mother.”

To say goodbye, John shook Clara’s hand once again. “Thank you. And good luck with your stepmother,” he wished her. “I’m sure you’ll find someone who will drive her mad.”

Clara forced herself to smile. “I hope so.”


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *big group hug for the sweet commenter* Thank you guys :) And, well, we know from the summary that John will change his mind eventually, don't we?

John had expected a lot of things. He had expected it to be difficult to find an alibi girlfriend, he had expected a string of awkward conversations, he had expected to feel relief once he had made the decision not to go through with it. What he hadn’t expected, however, was the heavy heart that followed his goodbye from Clara Oswald.

She was the exact opposite of the women he had met before, lovely and sincere and somehow, she had made him tell her about himself without thinking twice about it, something John rarely did. As for her plan, it wasn’t the usual _“I want to get back at my ex-lover”_ scheme he had read about multiple times on Alibi. Instead, her story was very similar to his own, only that Clara was taking a different approach. She was done with her family’s attempts to set her up and she had chosen a perfect form of revenge. One John could sadly not be a part of.

John needed a moment to recognise his feeling for what it was and he eventually settled on guilt. Somehow, he felt guilty for sending her away because a part of him had wanted to say yes and become her alibi boyfriend.

“Why did you send her away?”

John turned around and watched Susan enter the living room, reminding him that he still needed to scold her for eavesdropping once again.

“Because you were naughty and listened in on adult conversations,” he lied, glowering towards his daughter who seemed entirely unimpressed by her father’s glances.

Instead, she sank down on the sofa next to him with a sigh. “I liked her,” Susan told him truthfully. “She seemed really nice.”

“She was really nice,” John confirmed.

When he looked at his daughter’s expectant face, John realised that the time had come for the conversation he had wanted to have with her ever since she had started to support this silly endeavour. John needed her to understand why it was a stupid idea.

“I decided that I’m not going to do it,” he told her in a calm manner. “I want to see grandma happy as much as you do, but I don’t want to lie to her. Yes, you are right, it would have been a white lie, but a lie nonetheless. Besides, it would have been for just one evening and then what? I don’t think your grandmother would stop asking about Clara once she met her. It’s not something you can keep up forever.”

Susie nodded. John had known that she would understand.

“And you don’t want a real girlfriend,” Susan concluded.

John uttered a sigh. It wasn’t that he didn’t want one, but that it wasn’t as easy as some people thought. The perfect match was something rare and John was at that age where he didn’t want to settle for less, not when he was perfectly happy on his own.

“What your mother and I had was very special,” John told her. “I loved her very deeply and you don’t find someone like that so easily, especially not at my age when you don’t go out so much. But I think I deserve something special and so do you. If I bring a woman into this house, she doesn’t just have to love me and vice versa, she has to be your friend, too, at the very least. You two will need to get along. I won’t have it any other way.”

“And someone like that is rare, I get it,” Susan replied with a nod, but there was a hint of a smile on her face that John didn’t really understand. It looked almost mischievous and he didn’t like it. He knew that look from Missy’s face and when she smiled like that, it never boded well for him.

“By the way, I’m glad you think like that,” Susan announced. “Cause I don’t want to share you with someone who isn’t special.”

Her response made John chuckle, but it also reminded him of something his mother had said to him, something Missy had said to him.

“But while we don’t have a woman around,” he began carefully, “you know that you can come to me with anything, right? No matter what it is, you can tell me.”

At that, Susan rolled her eyes. “We’re not having that puberty talk again, are we?”

“If it’s something medical, I’m a doctor and I know a lot of things and if it’s about boys-”

“Ew! Gross!” Susan exclaimed. “I’m way too young for boys!”

“Glad to hear you say that,” John determined. “Keep that attitude until you’re thirty and we’re good.”

John didn’t actually expect her to do that, but when his daughter laughed, he felt reassured that everything was going to be fine. Lots of single fathers managed without a woman around and he was sure that they could do it, too. And maybe, just maybe, life had a miracle in store for them and he would actually meet someone who fit right into their lives like the last piece of a puzzle.

“Are you sure about Clara though?” Susan asked eventually. “Cause she looked really sad when she left.”

Like a knife to the gut, John felt a twinge of guilt because his daughter was right. He had really disappointed Clara, but there was nothing he could do about that now. John had changed his mind and he wasn’t going to change it back, no matter how badly his guilty conscience tugged at his heart.

* * *

When her grandmother released her from her embrace, Clara sighed heavily and sank down on the familiar sofa, eager to drink a nice cup of hot cocoa and have some of her grandmother’s biscuits. However, her nan’s inquisitive gaze didn’t escape her notice.

“What’s wrong?” she wanted to know. “I know you love my biscuits and cocoa, but I doubt that’s the only reason you came here on a Sunday afternoon.”

It wasn’t the only reason, her grandmother was absolutely right about it. After the meeting with John Smith, Clara had felt a particular kind of misery that only hot chocolate and biscuits could fix, but maybe, talking to her grandmother might also help.

“I had the perfect plan,” she admitted in her despair.

Her grandmother cocked her eyebrows at her. “The perfect plan for what exactly?”

“Technically, this was your idea because you said to come to the wedding in male company and I realised I couldn’t borrow Rory because Linda already met him once, so Amy gave me another idea.”

Her nan was still eyeing her cautiously, but she waited for Clara to continue before dumping a spate of judgement on her that was sure to follow her explanation. And why wouldn’t she judge her? Her plan, even if ingenious, was kind of mad.

“Amy found this website called Alibi where people find fake girlfriends and boyfriends and I thought I could pick someone who would drive Linda absolutely mad.”

To her surprise, her grandmother started to laugh and Clara wasn’t entirely sure whether she thought it was funny or ridiculous. Right now, it could absolutely mean both.

“And how did that go?” her grandmother wanted to know.

Once again, Clara sighed. “I found the perfect man. He’s a doctor who owns a lovely house in Lewisham, but the thing about him is that he’s a single father and almost sixty.”

When her grandmother snorted, Clara knew for sure that her reaction was one of amusement. For some reason, she liked Clara’s insane plan which should have lifted her spirits - but didn’t.

“I’m imagining the look on Linda’s face and it’s a nice image,” her nan admitted. “But if he’s perfect for your plan, then why are you looking so glum?”

After taking a sip from her cocoa, Clara started to tell her grandmother all about today. How she had gone to meet John Smith, how they had somehow connected instantly and how he had informed her that he had changed his mind about the whole scheme. Clara knew that she would likely find someone else to play the part, that there were other people out there who were looking for a fake partner, but the truth was: she wanted John Smith.

Once she had finished her story, Clara received a sympathetic look from her grandmother as she reached out to pat her hand. “Are you sure he’s not going to change his mind again?” she wanted to know. “I mean, if you got along well-”

“Nah, I’m afraid he meant it,” Clara admitted. “He said he doesn’t really want to lie to his mother and I get why. If it wasn’t for Linda, I wouldn’t do this either. It’s quite a mean trick.”

“It is, but a funny one in your case,” her grandma replied, chuckling.

Clara blew the air out between her teeth. “I know I’m likely to find someone else, but John was actually perfect. Linda would never have been able to say anything about the age difference no matter how much she wanted to because who can say something against a good-looking doctor? Here, let me show you a picture.”

Clara reached into her bag and pulled out her smartphone, quickly opening the app to show her grandmother what a handsome silver fox she could have almost taken to the wedding.

“Oh, he is a catch!” her grandmother exclaimed instantly. “And I’m not just talking about a fake date but a real one!”

Clara only half listened to her grandmother because as she spoke, a message popped up on her screen and Clara was ready to dismiss it immediately, not eager to get right back to the search after her first big disappointment when she noticed that the message came from John.

“He messaged me again,” Clara said absent-mindedly, wondering what on earth the message could contain while the content loaded.

**John Smith**

_Dear Clara,_  
_I’m terribly sorry about the way I acted earlier and I want to make it up to you. Truth is, I had made up my mind before meeting you, but I’m willing to reconsider now. Would you meet me tomorrow at 3 pm? There’s a café in Peckham I really liked called Petitou and we could talk again over some more coffee and maybe a slice of cake?_

_John_

“He says he’s willing to reconsider!” Clara announced happily and she felt her heart skip a little beat as her mood lightened instantly. If John was willing to meet her again, she still had a chance to change his mind and the prospect of that made a smile spread across her face. Maybe not all hope was lost just yet.

When she looked at her grandmother again, she found her nan smiling as well. “Go get him,” she told her with an almost mischievous smile.

And Clara vowed to do just that.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who was the message from? And what will John do? Let's find out :) And thank you guys so much for your comments!

When Susan had asked him to pick her up after school, John hadn’t thought anything of it. After all, he was on call and he had all the time in the world to spend with his daughter unless his pager decided to go off and they hadn’t had some good, old-fashioned father-daughter time last week. When she texted him after classes and told him to pick her up at a small café called Petitou, John still didn’t think anything of it. Sometimes, Susan and her friends went out after school to get a snack or a burger from the nearest McDonald’s. It wasn’t until he arrived at the small café that he started to get a weird feeling. Petitou wasn’t the sort of place Susan and her friends frequented and even though he remembered coming here with his daughter once, John didn’t think that she would pick this place out of all the other tempting options in the area.

Then, John spotted her and he felt his heart jump as he looked at the silhouette of Clara Oswald. It was a warm spring day, so she had chosen a table outside of the establishment and she was already sipping her coffee while holding a book in front of her nose. Slowly, the questions started to flood his mind and John pulled out his phone to confirm the nasty suspicion that the sight of Clara had aroused in him.

**Susie**

_Sorry ‘bout the trick. Gone home. Talk to Clara!_

“You little fiend,” John muttered under his breath as he pocketed the phone once again. He wasn’t entirely sure how his daughter had done it, but he was fairly certain that it had something to do with Missy’s phone call last night when his daughter had retreated to her own room to talk to her aunt. He should have known that nothing good would come of that. He should have known that something was up.

But he hadn’t seen through their plan and now, John felt that he had little choice but to talk to Clara if he didn’t want to stand her up and that was the last thing he wanted to do after everything that had happened. The sight of Clara had a strange effect on him and he blamed it on his ongoing guilty feeling in regards to her. John just couldn’t stand the idea of letting her down, but it was what he had to do. After taking a deep breath, he decided to approach her.

While John stepped closer, he had a moment to observe her and once again, he confirmed that Clara was very pretty, maybe even prettier in daylight, and remembering the jokes they had shared during their first meeting still made him laugh for some reason. If the circumstances were any different for him, Clara would have made an ideal alibi girlfriend. Finally, as he had reached her, he noticed the title of the book she was so immersed in.

“Brida,” John remarked as he came to a halt next to the table and realised he had read the title a couple of years ago. “Deep stuff.”

Clara’s head shot up from the pages and she beamed at him so brightly that her smile tugged at his insides. John didn’t know why, but she had had the same effect on him yesterday which was why he had found it so hard to send her away. Today, he realised, it wouldn’t be any easier. What on earth had Susan been thinking?

“Hey,” Clara greeted him, chuckling, “you’re late. I was afraid you had changed your mind again.”

With a sigh, John lowered himself into the chair across the table from Clara. He had already done it once, he could do it again. He could explain to her what was going on and how she had been tricked even though he didn’t quite understand it himself, but when Clara continued to smile at him, John found himself lost for words.

“I am so, so sorry,” he apologised instead.

Clara merely made a waving gesture. “You already apologised in your message yesterday.”

A message he hadn’t sent. At least, John now knew why Susan had wanted to borrow his laptop and he vowed to not let her do that ever again.

“About that,” he began but broke off quickly. John was going to disappoint her again and this time, it would be even harder. This time, she was smiling at him, her large, brown eyes almost brimming over with joy. This time, saying no to her was even harder and the words barely came out of his mouth. “I’m afraid that message didn’t come from me, it came from Susan. She pointed out that you looked sad when you left and I guess she figured I should give you another chance.”

Clara’s smile faded as quickly as it had appeared and it was as if John could see the disappointment return. “So… you haven’t actually reconsidered?”

 _Damn you, Susan. Damn you, Missy_ , John thought, _damn you, Clara Oswald with your big, sad eyes._

John didn’t want to trick his mother, he didn’t want to be part of a ruse like that, he didn’t want to agree to this madness, but the words that suddenly escaped his mouth were the complete opposite.

“Ah, what the hell,” he growled, “let’s do it.”

There wasn’t any harm in it, was there? John would introduce his mother to Clara, she would love seeing him happy and later on, he could just tell her that it hadn’t worked out and that he needed to focus on Susan. His mother would understand. Then, John would help Clara carry out her plan to get back at her stepmother. He would make Clara happy and in the end, everyone got what they wanted. Besides, John thought that it could have been much, much worse. At least, he and Clara got along.

“Really? You’re sure?” Clara asked and John could tell that she was desperately trying not to get her hopes up, but she was failing horribly if that bright smile was any indicator. She was happy. John had made her happy.

Somehow, the knowledge of that felt better than anything he had experienced lately.

“Yes,” John confirmed. “I’m sure.”

“And you’re not going to change your mind again?”

Finally, John started to laugh and he could feel the relief wash over him in a big wave. It was the right decision. He knew it even though he vowed to never admit that in front of Susan or Missy. They didn’t need to know how right they had been.

“I’m not going to change my mind again,” he promised, smiling at her in return. “How about we get some cake and talk a little more about the details?”

 

It didn’t escape John’s notice that Clara smiled continuously as they went inside and, shortly after, walked back to their table, each of them armed with large cup of coffee and a plate filled with cake and John couldn’t help but admit that he liked seeing her happy, he liked that he was the one to have made her happy, selfish as that sounded, but her happiness, her smile - it was almost contagious.

They soon settled back into their seats and John dug hungrily into his slice of cake, casually watching Clara do the same. Somehow, it seemed strange that such a beautiful and young woman needed to find a fake boyfriend. If she wanted to, she could have a proper one or even several, but then he remembered their first conversation and John realised that Clara was like him in that way. She had loved and lost and he knew that once someone had experienced true love, it was almost impossible to settle for less.

“So, when is that big wedding you want to take me to?” John asked curiously.

He watched Clara roll her eyes before she answered and he remembered her doing the exact same thing the day before when the topic of her stepmother had come up. “It’s in August.”

John couldn’t help but notice that she didn’t seem thrilled about the prospect of the wedding and somehow, he got the impression that it wasn’t just because of her stepmother. There was something else bothering her. “You only heard about it recently, didn’t you?”

With a sigh, Clara nodded. “Through an invitation card.”

“I’m sorry, what?!”

In response, she threw her head back and groaned. “My father knows that Linda and I don’t get along and grandma said he wasn’t sure what I would think, so he didn’t tell me in person, he sent an invitation card. I am ninety-nine per cent sure that it was Linda’s idea.”

“Ouch,” John responded with a hiss. “That’s not how you tell your daughter you’re getting married. He could have at least called.”

“I know!” Clara said exasperatedly. “That’s why I’m so mad! That’s part of the reason why I’m determined to show up with a fake date that will annoy Linda.”

Even though Clara probably didn’t find it funny at all, John laughed. “I get why you want to do that,” he said truthfully. “Linda sounds like she deserves it.”

“Oh, she absolutely does,” she confirmed.

While Clara continued to eat her cake, John suddenly thought of something else.

“I won’t have to wear a ridiculously fancy suit to the wedding, will I?” he wanted to know and in his mind, he went through the contents of his wardrobe and realised that he didn’t actually own anything wedding-appropriate, at least nothing he hadn’t already worn ten times.

Clara made a dismissive gesture. “Don’t worry,” she replied. “My grandma said something about a beach wedding. I don’t actually remember the details because I stopped reading the card after the words _‘wedding in August’_.”

“Well, it’s April. There’s enough time to worry about that later,” he reasoned.

“When is your family event?” Clara wanted to know.

“Oh, that’s in September,” John explained. “My mother’s birthday is in June, but both my parents turn eighty-five this year and my sister and I decided it was cause for a big party. Well, my sister decided. I had no say in that.”

“Well, that gives us four months to get to know each other a little better,” Clara noted with a smile. “Get our story straight and I should probably meet your daughter, too, so it doesn’t look too staged.”

John hadn’t actually considered that, but now that Clara was saying it, it made perfect sense. They would have to get to know each other, they would have to come up with a story of how they had met and all of a sudden, John couldn’t stop smiling. For a reason he couldn’t quite fathom, the prospect of spending more time with Clara Oswald over the following months was one that made him incredibly happy. John could hardly wait.

“That sounds like an excellent plan,” he agreed and turned his attention back to the cake in front of him.

Even though he had been coerced into agreeing to it, right now, as he sat here with Clara, John didn’t think he had ever had a better idea.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *casually posting this from school* Thank you guys for the lovely comments and keeping your fingers crossed for my exams :)

“You look happy.”

John spun around and quickly slid his phone back into his pocket when he stared straight into the face of his favourite colleague, a junior doctor by the name of Martha Jones who had a lot more potential than she gave herself credit for. Because John couldn’t really stand the company of too many people at once, he had formed the habit of having his lunch breaks with just Martha, someone who didn’t talk his ear off most of the time. Today, however, she looked like she was in a chatty mood as she smirked in his direction.

John cleared his throat. “What makes you assume that?”

His colleague shrugged. “I don’t know, but you’ve been smiling at your phone all day, so either someone’s constantly sending you funny cat pictures or you’re happy about something else.”  
He had noticed it on himself, of course, but John hadn’t thought that it was so visible to the outside world. Over a week had passed since his second meeting with Clara Oswald, over a week since he had agreed to become her fake boyfriend and he had yet to tell his daughter about that. John wasn’t entirely sure why he had kept it from Susan so far, why he had evaded her questions about the meeting and instead sent her to her room as punishment for the evil trick she had played on him, but really, John should thank her for it because, just as Martha had pointed out, he was happy.

Clara made him happy in a strange way. Somehow, their agreement had given him a new sense of purpose and John was enjoying it. After their long chat at the café, he and Clara had exchanged phone numbers and ever since, they had started quizzing each other about a number of things so as to get to know the other better. They could hardly pretend to be a couple if they knew nothing about each other. But that wasn’t a story he could tell Martha Jones, so maybe it was time to see how convincing he could pull it off.

“I may have… met someone,” he admitted coyly. So far, they had no story of how they had met, so John had to keep it vague.

His colleague’s face lit up in excitement. “Ohhh, who is she?” Martha demanded to know.

John gave her a casual shrug. “Her name is Clara and she’s a teacher. She’s… very pretty and we have a lot in common.”

The funny thing about that was that he didn’t even have to lie so far and judging by his colleague’s face, she didn’t doubt his tale one bit.

“Well, I’m happy for you,” she replied sincerely. “She does seem to make you smile a lot.”

“We’re only at a stage where we’re getting to know each other,” John admitted with a big grin on his face. “But I’m enjoying that quite a lot.”

As if on cue, his phone vibrated in his pocket and John pulled it out to read Clara’s latest message.

**Clara**  
_If I had to choose, I’d pick Italian. Love pasta and lasagna. What about favourite music to listen to when you want to relax?_

John smiled at the phone because somehow, he had known what Clara was going to reply to his question before he had even asked it. She just seemed to be the type to like Italian food and it was his favourite as well. Then, he thought about his answer to her next question.

**John**  
_Several things come in mind, depending on my mood. Bob Dylan, David Gray and Glen Miller are all suitable music for a relaxing evening._

This time, Clara’s reply was instant. She was obviously on her break as well and for a moment, John found himself wondering whether Clara was smiling at her phone as well and attracting the attention of her colleagues.

**Clara**  
_I have to admit that I’ve never heard of David Gray, but I’ll be sure to look him up when I get home. For me, Tracy Chapman is the way to go. And a slightly guilty pleasure of mine: Gabrielle._

**John**  
_Tracy Chapman - excellent choice! Do you play any instruments?_

**Clara**  
_Sadly, no, but I recall seeing a guitar at your place. Do you play?_

“Well, I’m going to leave you and Clara alone and get some coffee,” Martha said with a smirk. He really had convinced her, hadn’t he? This was easier than John had thought. “Do you want some?”

John smiled at her in reply. “Coffee would be great, thanks.”

When Martha left, John uttered a sigh of relief in the knowledge that he had made the right decision and maybe, it really was that apparent that it made him happy because he could hardly stop smiling. Now, they just had to convince his mother and Clara’s hated stepmother and everything would be fine. When John turned his attention back to his phone, he suddenly had a brilliant idea.

**John**  
_I do still play even though my daughter hates it. Would you like to get dinner on Saturday night? I know a couple of great Italian restaurants that we could try. It will give us a story to tell._

* * *

Even though Clara was already dressed, she took a moment to behold the navy cut-out dress hanging on her wardrobe door and wondered whether it would be a good choice. Earlier today, John had asked her out to dinner on Saturday and even though it was only the middle of the week, it couldn’t hurt to plan the event thoroughly. After all, they might want to take a few pictures to show to their relatives as proof.

“That’s a bit fancy for the pub, don’t you think?”

Amy’s voice interrupted her train of thoughts and made her turn around to where her best friend was standing. Clara granted her a smile.

“I have a _’date’_ on Saturday,” she announced with a proud grin.

Amy, who obviously hadn’t gotten the drift, frowned at her friend in return. “Why are you saying that so weirdly?”

Clara uttered a groan and let her shoulders sink, wondering how many more times she had to tell Amy about what she and John were going to do. Right after their second meeting, Clara had called her best friend to give her the good news, her voice almost brimming over with excitement. Amy, however, hadn’t really understood why she was so happy about a _fake_ boyfriend when, really, she could have her pick among thousands of users. Clara blamed it on the fact that her friend had never actually met John - something they should definitely change because if they wanted to keep up appearances, her best friend needed to meet her new boyfriend.

“I’m going on a fake date with my fake boyfriend,” Clara explained eventually. “We’re going to talk about what story we will tell people when they ask how we’ve met and I thought we could also take some couple photos to show to our families when they ask.”

Amy’s eyes wandered back to the dress on display and her eyebrows were raised even further. “And you’re going with your sexiest dress?”

Her friend had a point, Clara couldn’t deny that. She wouldn’t have hesitated to wear it to a normal date with a guy she fancied, but maybe it really was a bit much for John, especially if they really ended up taking photographs for their parents.

“Go with the red one,” Amy told her and nodded towards another gem in her collection. “Covers more of your legs but is still sexy. Also, it’s less likely to give his parents a heart attack.”

Clara grinned at her friend in reply. “Gotcha!”

 

When they arrived at the pub, Rose was already waiting for them, occupying a large table in the corner of the establishment. However, once they had settled down, a thought occurred to Clara.

“Hey, where’s Rory tonight?” she wanted to know.

“Night shift,” Amy explained before taking a large sip from the beer Rose had already ordered for them. “Tonight is a good, old-fashioned girls night.”

“Cheers to that,” Rose announced and lifted her glass. 

Clara and Amy followed her example and just as Clara was about to drink, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. While her friends continued their conversation, Clara pulled out her phone and opened John’s recent message.

**John**  
_Are you sure about the photos? I’m not exactly easy to photograph._

Clara smiled to herself. He was too modest for his own good and it was yet another quality she realised she liked about him. The more Clara learned about John, the more reassured she felt about her decision and she knew that she couldn’t possibly have picked a better man to be her fake boyfriend.

**Clara**  
_Don’t be silly. It’s just a selfie! Also, I already have a couple of ideas for how we could have met. I’ll tell you all about them on Saturday._

Suddenly, a whistling sound startled her and Clara’s head shot up, determined to figure out where it had come from - and found Rose grinning at her.

“Why are you smiling at your phone like that?” her friend wanted to know, a mischievous look on her face. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’re talking a nice, handsome man that you fancy quite a lot.”

For a moment, Clara considered coming out with the truth straight away, but then she saw the opportunity. A part of her wanted to know whether she could actually pull it off, whether she could be convincing enough to fool one of her best friends. Rose didn’t know about John yet, so it was the perfect chance to put her plan to the test.

“Actually,” Clara said with a grin, “possibly? I mean, it’s all still very new.”

It didn’t slip Clara’s attention that Amy’s head shot around and she found her friend glaring at her, but when Rose looked so intrigued, obviously desperate to know more, Clara decided to ignore Amy for now and enlighten her friend later.

“As Amy pointed out, this is a girl’s night, so I definitely need you to tell us everything!” Rose demanded, prompting a groan from Amy.

Still, Clara ignored it and continued with a smile. “Like I said, it’s all quite new. We’re going to have our first date on Saturday,” she announced proudly, followed by a nervous laugh.

Surprisingly, it wasn’t even fake. A part of Clara was nervous for some reason even though she didn’t quite know what about. It was only a fake date with a man she knew was nice and a gentleman. There was absolutely nothing to be nervous about.

Rose, however, seemed to buy every word she told her. “Well, don’t make me ask about every single detail! What does he look like? What does he do? What’s his name? Give me everything!”

Next to her, Amy rolled her eyes, but Clara was determined to keep the game going for a while longer.

“His name is John and he’s a doctor,” Clara told her friend. His profession alone was enough to widen her friend’s eyes and Clara knew that she was absorbing every word without even a hint of doubt. This was going to be easier than she had thought. “He’s a little older, but quite good-looking. He has amazing hair.”

Clara bit down on her lip as she recalled John’s marvellous silver curls and the reaction seemed to make her friend laugh.

“Well, I can tell you’re already in quite deep, not that I blame you,” Rose said with a shrug. “I wouldn’t mind meeting a handsome doctor.”

“Aren’t you forgetting one little detail?” Amy suddenly asked, sipping her beer.

When a look of confusion crossed Rose’s face, Clara couldn’t hold back the laugh. She had done it. She had managed to convince one of her best friends and gotten away with it. Her plan was perfect.

“I’m sorry to trick you like that,” Clara said, still chuckling, “but I wanted to see whether I could pull it off. John is my fake boyfriend who I will take to my father’s wedding.”

 

Rose’s confusion didn’t lift, so Clara decided to tell her the entire story - with the help of Amy, of course - and slowly, her friend was beginning to understand. Just as she had finished explaining, her phone buzzed again and Clara felt her heart skip a little beat as went to check her messages.

**John**  
_I’m looking forward to it!_

Clara smiled and she was about to write a reply when Rose interrupted her thoughts once again.

“Well, you certainly fooled me,” she said. “Good job. You really seemed like you’re utterly besotted.”

Clara grinned proudly at her friends. However, Amy didn’t smile back.

“Yeah,” she said instead, eyeing her cautiously. “Good job.”

Even though she didn’t quite understand what her friend was trying to tell her, Clara slid the phone back into her pocket and decided to focus on the girls for the rest of the night. Her excitement about meeting John again could wait even though, on the inside, she still felt like smiling.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Better late than never, but here comes the next chapter :) Thank you for your lovely comments, guys!

When he rang the doorbell, John had hoped he would have time to brace himself, to straighten his jacket, to take a deep breath because even though it wasn’t real, that didn’t make his first date with Clara any less nerve-racking. He was only mid-breath when the door opened and Clara smiled at him, taking his breath away in an instant. There she was, his beautiful alibi girlfriend, standing in front of him in her red dress and suddenly, John thought felt lost for words.

“Wow,” he uttered with a laugh and then immediately felt the urge to slap himself. “I mean, uh, hi.”

“Hi,” Clara replied, smiling so brightly at him as if she hadn’t registered his nervousness at all - or as if she was a little nervous herself, but that was a stupid idea. Clara had nothing to be nervous about and neither did he for that matter.

Finally, John decided to take that breath and get on with it. They were getting to know each other, there was no pressure, it was just two people going out for a nice meal to make a devious plan.

“I like your suit,” she noted eventually, nodding towards his latest purchase.

He had picked the first best thing from the very first shop he had entered, choosing a classic three-piece suit that had seemed a little too old-fashioned in hindsight, but if Clara liked it, maybe he had chosen well after all. Maybe if he went on dates more regularly, he wouldn’t have had to buy a suit for the occasion.

“I like your dress,” he said in reply. When was the last time a woman, no matter the circumstances, had dressed up for him? John couldn’t remember. “Shall we go?”

John extended his arm, a gesture that obviously took Clara by surprise because at first, she didn’t seem to know quite what to do with it. However, her confusion soon lifted as she closed the door behind her and took his arm. Together, they headed down the stairs.

“Where are you going to take me?” she asked curiously.

John chuckled. “Surprise.”

 

The look on Clara’s face was well worth evading her questions in the taxi, it was well worth holding out on every little bit of information because as they entered the Ristorante Frescobaldi, her mouth fell open.

For a moment, Clara didn’t say a thing as her eyes were glued to the tasteful interior. In fact, it seemed as if she wasn’t quite sure where to look first - the large fresco on the wall, the illuminated pillar-like shelf at the centre of the room that was stocked with glasses and wine bottles, or the ivy-covered ceiling that was adorned by hundreds of fairy lights. Whatever it was, John knew that he had chosen well and his hours of research had really paid off.

“It looks…” Clara began, but she wasn’t able to finish her sentence.

“Lovely? Charming? Like the perfect spot for a first fake date?”

“Way out of my price range,” she said eventually and when she finally turned her head towards John, she looked a little startled.

It made him laugh. “Don’t worry, I think I can afford it.”

“You can, I probably can’t. I’m only a teacher and this looks really expensive,” she argued with a hint of terror in her voice.

John decided to relieve her of that fear. “Well, this is kind of our first date, so it’s my treat.”

“It’s a fake date, I’m not sure the same rules apply.”

“Okay, then it’s my treat because I took so long to make up my mind and made you come to my house only to send you away again before my daughter made you come all the way to that silly café.”

Clara considered this option for a moment, but when he noticed the smile on her face, John knew that she would agree and it made him happy. If she had said no, he would have just found a different excuse, but there was no way he would make her pay for her own meal tonight. Fake date or not, he was going to play it by the rules.

The waiter arrived shortly after and accompanied them to their table by the pillar and John really didn’t mind because it provided some extra light for them to properly see the expensive meal they were about to eat. While Clara still seemed a little intimidated by the venue, John asked the waiter for a wine recommendation and once they were on their own, he finally decided to focus on Clara.

“Are you alright?” he wanted to know. “If you’d rather go elsewhere-”

“No, please, this is lovely,” she said instantly, smiling once again. “It’s just… I don’t think I’ve ever been to a restaurant this fancy.”

She laughed once more and this time, John was sure that she was nervous as well, something that somehow lightened his own mood. They were two adults who were about to invent an insane story to pretend in front of their parents that they were a couple. He guessed that it was normal to feel at least a little nervous under the circumstance.

“Alright, second date at McDonald’s is booked,” he joked.

Clara’s smile widened and John could tell that she was beginning to relax. He had to admit that he quite liked the sight of that, Clara in her red dress, smiling happily, laughing at his silly jokes. He really had chosen the perfect match - or rather, she had chosen him. They studied the menu and soon after, the waiter arrived with the wine that came with a price tag of £95 and John made the decision that Clara didn’t need to know that. He wanted her to enjoy the evening without feeling guilty about what it cost. Once the waiter had taken their order, they were once again left to themselves.

“Oh my God,” Clara uttered once she had taken a sip from the wine. “John, you did not buy the most expensive wine from the menu, did you?”

He chuckled in response. “Will you stop feeling guilty about this dinner? I didn’t buy the most expensive wine, but even if I had, it’s been years since I’ve had dinner with a lovely woman. Fake date or not, I like playing the gentleman, so just enjoy it and if you say another word, I’ll actually take you to McDonald’s.”

Finally, Clara seemed to let it go as she sank back into her seat and tasted the wine once again. John followed her example and determined that the waiter had made an excellent choice. It was going to go well with their meal.

“So, um, I’ve thought about what we could tell people about how we’ve met,” John began. It was the point of their date, wasn’t it? To come up with a battle plan even though, right now, John would rather just enjoy her company. “I was thinking that maybe you were a patient of mine and I asked you out for a date.”

To his surprise, Clara’s reaction was the wrinkling of her nose. “Do you often do that? Ask your patients out on a date while you’re examining them?”

At first, John was a little confused as to why she seemed so against the idea, then, he had to admit that Clara was right. It was mildly inappropriate and not something John would actually do, no matter how much he fancied a woman.

“How about I was your patient and I asked you out?”

John snorted in response. “What? Cause you instantly fell for my youthful face?”

Clara finished her wine and then shrugged.

“I don’t think people are going to believe that.”

“Why not?” Clara wanted to know. At last, she was thawing and so was he, finally throwing his nervousness overboard, finally having an actual conversation even though, right now, they didn’t agree yet. “You’re handsome. I could have fallen for you at first sight.”

John could feel himself blush at the compliment, but he still wasn’t entirely convinced. Yet as Clara poured herself another glass of wine, he thought that she looked a little embarrassed as well.

“How about it wasn’t at first sight? What if I wasn’t sure and faked an injury to get a second look at you?” she asked, now looking back up at him with a mischievous smirk.

“You don’t think I would’ve seen through a fake injury?” he teased.

“You probably did, but it amused you, so you played along.”

Finally, an idea John could get on board with. “Well, I obviously saw through it and I obviously liked you, but I can’t just ask my patients out for a date, so I made you come back for a checkup. And another. And then another.”

“You kept suggesting all those things that you needed to look into until I finally cracked and admitted that I was symptom-free and just wanted to go out with you,” Clara concluded with a grin.

“And I agreed,” John said, grinning back at her. It was an adorable story, he had to admit that. “So here we are, on our first date.”

Clara raised her glass, smiling at him and John followed her example. “Cheers to that.”

“Cheers,” John replied as they clinked their glasses together and over the brim, he looked Clara in the eyes. He realised it then and there. If the circumstances were different, if he was twenty years younger, if he didn’t have a child to think about and a marriage in his past, that was exactly how it could have gone. Clara was the type of woman he would have fallen madly in love with.

But since the circumstances were exactly what they were, John just sat there and watched Clara enjoy her wine, he watched her smile, he watched her eyes light up as their food arrived and he felt happy in the knowledge that at least, he could treat this marvellous woman to a lovely evening.

Suddenly, Clara began to chuckle and he watched her cheeks blush at the thought of a joke she wasn’t quite ready to share.

“What are you laughing at?” he asked curiously.

Instead of replying, Clara shook her head, but the amusement was still visible on her face. “It’s nothing.”

He didn’t believe it, so he waited until she had swallowed her bite and washed it down with some more of the wine until she was finally ready to tell him.

“It’s just that this first fake date is definitely going a lot better than my last real first date,” she admitted, chuckling. “Okay, that didn’t make a lot of sense.”

“Makes sense to me,” he argued.

Clara giggled softly before she continued her story. “Danny, my boyfriend, he was also my colleague and I had asked him out and we went to this restaurant and it was about as disastrous as a date could be.”

“What?” John asked, chuckling. “You spilt wine over his white shirt and he insulted you by accident?”

“ _I_ insulted _him_ by accident. _Then_ he insulted me by accident. It was so awkward that I don’t think I missed a single opportunity to put my foot in and neither did he. In the end, I stormed out and just left him there,” Clara said, still giggling at the memory of it.

“Poor Danny,” John muttered and he could vaguely imagine what the man must have felt like. Luckily for John, however, he wasn’t in that situation.

“Poor Clara,” she replied, emptying her wineglass and John was just about to warn her of the nasty side effects this sort of beverage could have when she continued to giggle and directed a question at him. “What about you? Any awkward date stories?”

John blew the air out between his teeth, pondering his answer for a while, but no matter how much he thought about it, nothing would come to mind. “None that I can think of.”

“Really?” Clara asked in disbelief. “A man like you?”

“A man like me?” John arched up his eyebrows.

“You know,” she went on, nodding in his direction, “successful, sexy silver fox? I’m sure there have been a lot of candidates.”

Her words took him so much by surprise that he almost choked on his food. Instead, he coughed and his eyes widened at her, but as he looked, John noticed something else. At first, he thought it was the ambient light, but then he realised that Clara was blushing mercilessly. 

“I… uh,” she spluttered nervously, “I just said something kind of inappropriate, didn’t I?”

“Well-”

“Alright, I said it,” she admitted with a heavy sigh. “Please, forget that I did.”

John chuckled as Clara covered her face with her hands and suddenly, he realised that he didn’t even feel nervous anymore. Somehow, Clara’s slip of tongue had broken the ice completely and he had to admit that it was a boost of confidence to be called a silver fox by a young and attractive woman. He decided to accept it - and to relieve her of the embarrassment.

“Only if you forget that I said you’re looking incredibly beautiful tonight,” he said and he meant it.

Finally, Clara lifted her hands from her face and looked at him. She was still blushing, but slowly, he watched a smile appear on her lips and it made his heart jump up with joy. But he also spotted an opportunity for humour.

“ _Now_ I have an awkward date story,” he joked and to his relief, Clara laughed with him. It almost made him forget that none of this was actually real.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *big group hug for the lovely comments* :) Thank you guys! I'm glad you've enjoyed their first "date", but let's see how things go from there, shall we?

“Shit,” Clara cursed quietly as she closed the bathroom door behind her. To her great relief, the room was empty and as she took a deep breath, she tried not to think about what an idiot she was. The attempt was all there was because Clara couldn’t ban the thoughts from her fuzzy mind. “Shit, shit, shit, shit.”

All of it had started out so nicely. John. The restaurant. The food. The wine. Especially the wine because it had turned her from a nervous wreck into a nervous, bumbling idiot. Clara smacked her hand on her forehead as she remembered the stupid things that had come out of her mouth, but the wine had loosened her tongue and suddenly, there had been no holding them back.

“Sex silver fox,” Clara muttered to herself as she squeezed her eyes shut. “Clara, you moron!”

She had to hand it to John that he had taken it really well and with a sense of humour, but no amount of that could cover up everything else that she had said and done after and right now, Clara wished that she could just turn back time and start the evening all over again. This time, she wouldn’t drink the wine, she wouldn’t call him a silver fox, she wouldn’t stare at his face or his hair or at his unbuttoned collar, she wouldn’t do any of these things and above all, there was one thing she would take back if only she could.

“You know, I kind of wish this was a real date,” she had said with a giggle and once more, Clara felt the urge to slap herself for her own stupidity.

When she opened her eyes again, Clara found herself still in the restaurant’s bathroom and the floral tiles were dancing around her in front of her eyes. She really shouldn’t have had so much wine. Slowly, Clara started to approach the washbasins, turned on the water and splashed the cool liquid right across her flushed face. She briefly considered her make-up, but decided that it didn’t matter. John was only a fake date, after all, there was no point in impressing him at all and she didn’t take him for a man who would mind a little smudged eyeliner either way.

The cool water felt amazing on her burning skin and just like that, her muddled head felt a little clearer. It wasn’t so bad, was it? Clara had just let herself get carried away.

Then, she uttered a groan. It was exactly that bad. John would think she had actual feelings for him or she was confused or stupid or just drunk and stupid. None of that was a good scenario.

A knock on the bathroom door startled her and at first, it didn’t make a lot of sense. It was a public bathroom - whoever wanted to enter could just walk in. Then, she heard his voice and Clara felt her heart sink.

“Clara?” John’s voice came from the other side of the door. He sounded a little worried. “Are you alright in there?”

Knowing that there was no way out of this restaurant but through John, knowing that she would have to face him sooner or later, she dried off her face with a paper towel and walked up to the door, cursing herself for wearing heels and drinking wine. A combination of the two never went well. Clara opened the door just a crack and looked up at him, meeting his worried gaze immediately. This would be a perfect moment to be swallowed by a hole in the ground.

“Are you okay?” John asked to her surprise.

In response, Clara uttered a sigh and leaned against the doorframe. “I’m so sorry,” she muttered. “I’ve been an idiot.”

Clara averted her gaze and closed her eyes again. She couldn’t look at him. Not now. Not ever. This was even worse than her first date with Danny and a lot more embarrassing.

John surprised her once again by chuckling. “Why would you say that?”

She groaned again. “Because I’ve had too much wine and I’ve said stupid things that I didn’t mean and now I’m hiding in the bathroom, waiting for you to tell me that the whole thing is off because you don’t want to introduce a nutter to your parents. This couldn’t have gone any worse. I’m a catastrophe when it comes to dates, real or fake. It’s a disaster!”

“Really?” he asked her and when Clara dared to open her eyes again, she noticed that he looked a little confused. “Because I think it was going well. Up until the point you decided to hide from me.”

“You do?” Clara asked back, now feeling a little confused herself.

John granted her another one of his sweet smiles. “How about we call it a night and head home, hm?” he asked. “You look tired.”

Clara breathed in deeply. Was it possible that he would give her another chance? Knowing that there was no way to determine that right now, knowing that the wine was still making it hard for her to think clearly, Clara decided to postpone the question, so she merely nodded. “I am tired,” she admitted.

“Alright,” John said and extended his arm to her once more. This time, Clara was even more grateful for the gesture.

 

Their taxi was already waiting for them when they stepped outside and Clara breathed in the cool spring air which lifted some of her drowsiness, but she knew that the worst was yet to come. Tomorrow morning, she would pay for every single glass of wine she had had - but that was after she had slept for as long as possible.

The car took her straight to her flat and when it came to a halt, Clara was surprised when John told the driver to wait for him while he stepped out of the car as well. She frowned at him in response, not really knowing what it meant.

John merely shrugged. “Told you. I’m playing this by the book,” he explained. “That means walking you to your door.”

“It’s twelve flights of stairs,” Clara argued.

“All the more reason to make sure you don’t break your neck in those shoes,” John said while she took his arm once again. When they moved towards her building, he started to laugh. “Were you trying to match my height? It’s flattering but unnecessary.”

“Shut up,” she said, giggling. Even after she had made such a mess of the evening, John still hadn’t lost his sense of humour.

They remained silent for most of the way up, mainly because Clara was busy enough trying to coordinate her feet and fighting the urge to close her eyes and fall asleep standing up. When she had finally reached and opened her door, the first thing she did was taking off those painful heels, sighing in relief once her feet were aligned with the floor. However, she soon noticed that she now barely reached John’s shoulder and he had obviously come to the same conclusion because he started to laugh.

“Okay, I see the point of the shoes now,” he remarked.

Scowling playfully at him, Clara prodded his chest with her index finger. “Mean,” she growled and then realised with a sigh that it was time for John to say goodnight. He had behaved like a true gentleman all evening, something Clara hadn’t experienced in a very long time and once again, she felt a sense of sadness that none of it was actually real. “Thank you for the evening. It was lovely.”

“You’re welcome. And I’m sorry,” he muttered sheepishly.

“ _You’re_ sorry?”

“I should have warned you about the wine,” John said, biting down on his own lip and giving her an apologetic look.

Clara made a dismissive gesture. “I don’t think I would have listened anyway,” she admitted with a smile.

“Well, see you soon?” John asked hopefully and Clara felt her heart skip a beat. He wanted to see her again. Their devious plan was still on. Just thinking about repeating this evening made her incredibly happy and the possibility was enough to lift her spirits.

If even she had wanted to hide it, Clara couldn’t stop herself from smiling as she leaned against her doorframe and looked at John. “See you soon,” she confirmed happily.

Clara watched as John turned around to leave, but just as he had reached the stairs, he turned around one last time and looked straight at her. She had no idea why, but then he started to speak. “You know, under different circumstances, this really would have been a perfect first date,” he told her in a voice that was so sincere, Clara didn’t doubt for a second that he truly meant it. She had admitted it, John had admitted it. They were even now.

Clara’s smile widened. “Good night, John.”

“Sleep well,” he told her and then vanished down the stairs, leaving Clara with a warm and fuzzy feeling. She shrugged it off and closed her door. It was only the wine that was making her feel like that.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for the sweet comments :)

Clara hit the snooze button to silence the blaring alarm, but to her annoyance, it didn’t shut up. She slammed her palm down on the brutal machine over and over again, but no matter what she did, the noise continued and it was doing exactly what it was meant to do. Clara was waking up.

As she slowly came to, she began to notice the sound and realised that it wasn’t her alarm at all that had woken her but the ringing of her phone. Groggily, she answered.

“Yeah?” she croaked once she had lifted the phone to her ear.

The chuckling sound on the other end of the line was familiar and from one moment to the next, Clara was wide awake. She also became aware of the heaviness that surrounded her brain, but the hangover wasn’t nearly as bad as she had anticipated. Eventually, Clara allowed herself to smile.

“Sorry to wake you,” John said, keeping his voice low and hushed.

A glance at her useless alarm clock told her that it was close to ten in the morning and about time she got out of bed. “No worries,” she replied. “About time I woke up.”

“I just wanted to know how you’re doing,” John explained, followed by a sigh. “That’s all.”

Apparently, Clara had been mistaken when she had assumed that their date was a disaster and John’s worried call only confirmed that. He truly was a gentleman and he didn’t hold anything against her. That was a weight dropping off her shoulders.

“Still a little embarrassed, but I’ll live,” she confirmed, chuckling softly. “Hiding from you in the bathroom really wasn’t my proudest moment.”

“You weren’t feeling well, it’s alright,” he quickly reassured her. “Besides, you can make it up to me on fake date number two if you like.”

“I definitely will,” Clara confirmed. She braved the heavy head and finally sat up, surprised to feel actually awake by now. “I promise you, I’m a lot less difficult on second dates. I’m sure that applies to fake ones, too.”

“Good to hear,” John replied, the amusement audible in his voice.

Then, as her eyes trailed over the stack of mail on her bedside table, Clara suddenly thought of something and she supposed that it was time to make the announcement to her parents. And she already knew how she was going to do that.

“Question: do you want the chicken or the fish?” she asked.

“Uh,” John paused and there was a hint of confusion in his hesitation, “for what purpose?”

Clara cleared her throat, getting ready for the explanation. “My father’s wedding. I have to reply to the invitation card and that includes my choice for the food. And yours.”

“Well, in that case, I guess I’ll have the chicken,” he replied and then continued. “Wait, you’re not letting your father know that you will bring someone through the reply card?”

She shrugged even though John couldn’t see it. “I mean, he informed me of the wedding through an invitation card. It’s only fair.”

To her astonishment, John started to laugh. “I like you, Clara Oswald,” he said, still chuckling.

“Thanks,” she said and not without a hint of pride. “Well, I should probably get dressed and do some of my markings, but thanks for your call. That was very sweet.”

“See you around,” he replied and the phone call ended.

 

For some reason, the conversation had invigorated her, so Clara jumped out of bed and decided to start her day with a warm shower before putting on her most comfortable clothes and she retreated to the sofa with a cup of coffee and a slice of toast. She had only just taken the first bite when her phone rang again and this time, it wasn’t John but her best friend Amy who was calling.

“How was your date?!” Amy almost yelled into her ear with her usual enthusiasm when Clara picked up and she quickly put some distance between her ear and the phone.

“Whoah,” Clara replied, still chewing her toast, “don’t shout.”

“Hangover?”

“Just a small one,” she admitted. “Date was… good. Well, it started great and then it got to the usual point where I embarrass myself terribly and then it went back to being great, I think. So, apart from the usual bit in the middle where I behave like an idiot, no complaints.”

“Wow, you’re brimming over with detailed descriptions,” her friend said, the sarcasm almost dripping from her voice. “Care to elaborate?”

Clara wasn’t entirely sure whether she should actually tell Amy about everything, but she also knew that resistance was futile and that her friend would squeeze it out of her one way or another, so she decided to give her the full story and Amy listened intently until she had finished.

“Wow,” Amy said once again, but this time, she sounded a little more impressed and Clara could understand why. If it had been a normal, regular date, it would have been the best she had ever had. “He really went all out, didn’t he? I mean, fancy restaurant, paying the bill, bringing you home to your doorstep. Rory could learn something from him.”

“See? That’s why I said what I said because if that had been a real date, chances are good I would have dragged the man straight into bed with me after an evening like that. Everything he did just screamed _perfect date_.”

Her friend cleared her throat on the other end of the line and it took her a while to respond. When she spoke at last, it wasn’t quite what Clara had expected to hear. “Clara, can I ask you an honest question?”

“Um, sure. What is it?”

“Do you fancy John?” her friend wanted to know and the question took Clara so much by surprise that at first, she didn’t know what to say. “I mean, I certainly wouldn’t blame you if you did. That guy sounds amazing.”

Clara took a deep breath and pondered her answer for a while and yes, she had already asked herself the same question the previous night when she had attempted to fall asleep, but she had already come to a conclusion then. “I know what you’re trying to say and I know what it sounds like, but you know what? I think I just fancy the way he treats me,” Clara admitted eventually. “There’s a good reason neither of us is looking for a relationship and honestly? It’s a relief. There’s no pressure. But John is a really nice guy, he’s easy to talk to and I think we’re both enjoying this fake dating. It’s been a while since someone has paid me attention like that and John said a similar thing last night and the fact that none of it is actually real makes it… easier. It’s just two adults talking and having dinner together. I like that.”

“Good,” her friend concluded eventually. “I just wanted to ask because… I don’t want to see you end up with a broken heart.”

“That’s sweet,” Clara replied, “but unnecessary. John and I know exactly where we stand with each other.”

When her friend finally hung up, Clara’s gaze shifted to the invitation card again and this time, she picked up a pen and decided to make an announcement. With a big grin on her face, Clara scribbled her reply on the card, informing her father and stepmother that she would be attending with company and that both of them would have the chicken.

* * *

“Who was that?”

John spun around and looked straight into Susan’s face, quickly dropping the phone to hide what he had been doing. In fact, he hadn’t counted on his daughter being up already, so he was a little startled to be almost caught by her.

“Uh,” he paused, racking his brain for a suitable lie, “that was your aunt.”

Susan’s eyes narrowed a little and John got the distinct impression that she didn’t believe him. Why was he even lying to her? She was his daughter and yes, she had pulled a nasty trick to get him to become Clara’s fake boyfriend, but that didn’t excuse the lying. He should tell her the truth.

“So you were with Aunt Missy last night?”

“Yeah,” he stammered on, hoping that it was enough to fool his twelve-year-old daughter, “you know, she’s still a little sad because of what happened with Aunt Lucy. She needed a bit of comfort… food. So we went to a restaurant.”

“Hm,” Susan replied, her investigative gaze still set on him, but after a while, she merely shrugged. “Alright. What’s for breakfast?”

John blew the air out between his teeth when Susan headed towards the kitchen. He knew that he couldn’t lie to her forever, he knew that soon, he would have to come clean and admit that she had helped him, but that didn’t mean John had to do it right now. For a while, he could just enjoy having a little secret. And Clara was a secret he was enjoying very, very much.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another Wednesday, another chapter :) Glad to hear you're still enjoying the story!

“Close your eyes.”

Despite the rather straightforward instruction, Clara didn’t close her eyes. Instead, she turned her head towards the driver’s seat where John was smiling to himself. For some reason, it made her a little cautious.

Clara arched up her eyebrows. “Why?”

“Because the place I’m taking you to, it’s going to be a surprise,” he explained, but as he did, the strange smile only widened. Something was up, Clara could feel it. “I don’t want it to be ruined, so close your eyes now.”

Even though she really didn’t like the secrecy surrounding their second fake date, Clara knew that she could trust him - at least some extent - so she did what he was asking and closed her eyes. As she felt the car turn around a corner, Clara resisted the urge to have a peek even though she really wanted to. Whatever John had planned, it had to be something grand… or ridiculous. Clara just had to wait for the outcome to see which one it was.

 

She waited patiently for them to arrive, keeping her eyes closed at all times and even when the car stopped and she heard John get out of the vehicle, she didn’t cheat. Clara was determined to not ruin the surprise, whatever it was. Then, the passenger door opened and Clara could feel him reach for her hand while he guided her out of the car and a few steps towards whatever the surprise was.

“Alright, you can open them now,” John told her. Was that a hint of amusement in his voice? A hint of pride?

No time for an analysis. Clara opened her eyes and realised instantly that she really should have known.

“Why am I surprised?” Clara asked, followed by a laugh. “I really shouldn’t be surprised.”

She shook her head, still laughing at the prank he had pulled, but even as she stared at the huge neon sign above the McDonald’s restaurant, Clara couldn’t help but admit that she really liked his sense of humour.

“Well, you complained about the last restaurant being too fancy and, in my defence, I did warn you,” John said, grinning broadly.

“Yep,” Clara agreed, nodding, “you really did.”

“So, let’s go inside?” John asked hopefully and Clara agreed with a smile.

However, as they stepped inside the restaurant, Clara noticed something kind of unusual, something she couldn’t remember ever seeing in one of these restaurants before. There was a remote table by the window that overlooked the empty playground and it was properly set like someone might expect from a different restaurant but not a McDonald’s branch. It had a white tablecloth and a couple of tea lights right on top of it. She needed a moment to make sense of the scene in front of her, but once she had, Clara couldn’t help but laugh.

“Okay, I’m not sure whether this is brilliant or ridiculous,” she chuckled, nodding towards the table that was obviously meant for them. Then, she turned towards John, but to her surprise, he waved at the woman behind the counter. “Do you know the employees here?”

“Just one,” John explained. “I helped Bill with her application essay for uni. It was a medical thing. She owed me this one.”

Clara decided to accept the explanation even though she still couldn’t quite determine whether John was a genius or a bit of a madman. Maybe, he was both, but she didn’t feel like complaining about that at all.

They walked up to the counter, ordered their food and John exchanged a couple of words with the crew member named Bill, asking about her wellbeing and her classes. When the time came to pay, Clara finally stepped in.

“Oh no, this one’s on me,” she announced and whipped out her wallet, only to earn a stern look from John immediately.

“Absolutely not,” he argued. “It was my idea-”

“And it’s my turn to pay,” Clara decided and handed Bill the money. When she turned towards John again, she granted him a smile. “Welcome to the rules of dating in the twenty-first century.”

John grumbled in reply, but he seemed to realise that there was no point in arguing with her about it, so he agreed. “Fine, if it makes you happy.”

“It does, actually,” Clara said with a grin.

Armed with their trays full of food and drinks, they walked towards the table that was adorned not only be tea lights and a tablecloth, but a large, hand-drawn sign saying “reserved” and Clara could tell just how much effort John had put into making this happen. Once again, she thought it was a bit of a shame that none of this was real, that it was only a game of pretend, but if there were men like John in the world, Clara was sure that one day, she would meet one of them when she was ready to actually fall in love again.

Like the gentleman he was, John held the chair for her as she sat down and soon, they started to devour their food. Admittedly, it wasn’t quite as tasty as their last meal at the Italian place had been, but it still was excellent. Then, Clara thought of something.

“Oh, we need to take a picture,” she announced excitedly and whipped her phone out of her pocket. “We need to have something to show to our parents and this is a great set-up.”

“Really? Now?” John asked and only managed to wipe some of the grease off his lips with a paper napkin before Clara started posing.

Clara nodded determinedly. “Yes, now,” she confirmed.

The photo was perfectly arranged. Clara and John sitting next to each other in their clothes that were too fancy for the venue, her head resting on his shoulder, both of them smiling into the camera while the tea lights were still visible in front of them, as was the McDonald’s logo behind them. Clara snapped the picture.

“It’s perfect,” she said.

“Your parents will question my sanity,” John muttered quietly and somehow, it made Clara chuckle.

“Luckily, I didn’t choose you to make a perfect impression.”

They continued their meal in silence for a while and Clara had to admit that she didn’t actually mind that. Normally, the lack of conversation would have made her uncomfortable, but not with John. He was the kind of person she just felt comfortable with, but when they had both finished their burgers and moved on to the milkshake, he picked the conversation back up.

“So, is there anything else I should know about you before we go public in front of our parents? I mean, we covered music and films and hobbies.”

“What about previous relationships?” Clara suggested. “That’s probably something we would have talked about as a couple.”

John considered it for a moment as if he was thinking back to his own past, counting all the women he had been with. Suddenly, Clara started to actually wonder how many there had been and she became curious. John didn’t really seem like a Casanova, but she knew that silent waters often ran deep.

“Well, obviously, there is my late wife,” he began. “Her name was River and she is Susan’s mother. We were together for twenty-four years and she died when Susie was three.”

“That can’t have been easy,” Clara noted. She knew from experience what it was like to lose someone, but she couldn’t even imagine how much more painful it would be after twenty-four years.

John smiled at her, but it was a sad one. “It wasn’t, but we made it. Susie barely remembers her and I think it’s a blessing. You can’t miss what you don’t remember.”

“What about you?” Clara asked before she could stop herself. It was none of her business, but she genuinely wanted to know. “Do you miss her?”

“Occasionally,” John admitted, still smiling.

This conversation was taking a sad turn and Clara decided to steer it towards a more cheerful topic, one that might satisfy her curiosity. “And before River?”

Just like she had wanted, John started to laugh. “Oh God, that was ages ago,” he said.

In response, Clara smirked at him. One way or another, she would get a number out of him. “How many?”

Still, John was laughing. Maybe he did it to cover up the fact that he didn’t actually know, that he couldn’t remember because of the sheer number of conquests. However, the number that eventually came out of his mouth took her by surprise.

“Two,” he confessed.

Three women. In almost sixty years of his life, John had only ever been with three women.

“There was Fred,” he announced.

Clara’s eyebrows shot up. “Fred?”

Her confusion seemed to make him laugh even more. “It’s just what I called her. She had a rather long and complicated name. Officially, she went by Romana, but I called her Fred to annoy her. It stuck. She was the first woman I dated and she left me to go travelling after school.”

“And the other?”

“Sarah Jane,” John told her with a bright smile. “She was smart and ambitious, a journalist. But I realised I was standing in the way of her career, so I let her go.”

“And then came River,” Clara concluded. She had misjudged John once again and now she understood why he didn’t have any awkward date stories. He was a monogamist through and through, searching for the one that would stay.

“And then came River,” he confirmed, but then suddenly, something in his expression changed again and he looked straight at her. “What about you? Tell me all about your sordid past.”

Clara chuckled. “Oh, I don’t think it’s very sordid. It’s not so very different from your story. There were three. It started at school with my friend Nina.”

“Nina?” John sounded surprised.

“Yeah,” she replied, smiling, “we were young and experimenting and it didn’t last beyond school. We both went off to different cities and that was it. Then I met Johnny, the crazy, bow-tie wearing idiot who left me on Christmas Day while my family was there to visit.”

“Ouch,” John remarked with a hissing sound.

Clara nodded. At the time, she had been so hurt, but years later, she knew that it had actually been a good thing. Johnny hadn’t always treated her well.

“Then came Danny,” she explained and she herself noticed that her voice still sounded a little sad whenever she thought about him. “He was the first person I could actually see myself having a future with. I mean, we weren’t together for that long, just a bit over a year before he died in a car accident, but he was a good man.”

Clara had an epiphany when John smiled at her. They were almost perfect for each other and despite the fact that they shared similar tastes in music and movies, despite the fact that they had the same sense of humour and just seemed to be comfortable around each other, they were only here on a fake date. If the circumstances had been any different, it might have been a proper one, but as it was, neither of them was actually looking for a relationship. If they were, they would have found the perfect match in each other.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *big group hug for the lovely comments* Shall we see what our favourite non-lovebirds get up to next?

It wasn’t exactly how John had expected the evening to go, but after not seeing Clara for two weeks, thanks to their full schedules, he was happy to receive her call on Saturday afternoon.

“Emergency!” Clara said straight after he had picked up the phone. “What are you doing tonight?”

John opened his mouth to reply that, in fact, he had nothing on his schedule when Clara already continued.

“I have tickets to a concert and the friend I was supposed to go with came down with the stomach flu,” she announced and due to the speed at which the words bubbled out of her mouth, he needed a moment to process what she was saying.

Concert tickets. Sick friend. Emergency.

“You want me to go with you?” John asked just to be certain.

“You can count it as fake date number three and on the way home, we can make up a story about how we had our first kiss.”

John paused for a moment. “Hang on, isn’t date number three usually the point where couples have sex in the movies?”

“Yeah, but that’s not something I’m going to tell my parents, is it? Please, just say yes. Everyone else I know already has plans for tonight and I really don’t want to go on my own,” Clara almost begged him and John heard himself sigh in return. How could he possible tun her down?

“Alright. What time do you want me to pick you up?”

“Seven would be perfect,” Clara replied and even though he couldn’t see her, John still imagined the big grin on her face.

 

It was well after midnight when the concert ended and John and Clara started walking back to the car. His ears were still ringing a little and even though he had spent the last few hours wondering how on earth Clara had tricked him like that, he had to admit that it wasn’t as bad as he had initially thought.

“Ed Sheeran,” John muttered to himself. “My fake girlfriend tricked me into going to an Ed Sheeran concert.”

Clara giggled next to him and even though he wanted to hate her for it just a little, John couldn’t bring himself to. She hadn’t mentioned what kind of concert they would be going to with a single syllable, he hadn’t asked, trusting in her taste and by the time he had spotted the large banners over the concert hall, it had been too late to back out.

“Oh, come on,” Clara said and he felt her nudge him with her elbow. “It wasn’t so bad.”

“I was the oldest person in the audience!” John argued, trying his best to sound grumpy when really, he wasn’t. He had actually liked a few of the songs.

Then, the unexpected happened. John was forced to come to an abrupt halt when he felt Clara placed her arms around his neck and press her body against his own in a tight hug. He stiffened up instantly as if by instinct, remembering how much he hated hugs, only to realise that this time, he didn’t seem to hate it at all. Actually, to have Clara hug him was kind of nice.

“Um,” he still muttered in protest, “I’m not really a hugging person.”

Once again, she giggled and at last, released him from the embrace. “Thank you for coming with me,” she said sincerely.

When John glanced at her, he noticed the smile under the warm light of the streetlamp and determined that listening to a few Ed Sheeran songs had definitely been worth it just to see her happy. However, he also vowed to take his revenge as soon as the opportunity presented itself.

“You’re welcome,” he replied eventually. “But just so you know, I’m going to pick the next concert.”

“Sounds fair enough,” Clara agreed.

As they continued their walk, John started to wonder why he had parked his car so far away from the venue and when he watched Clara yawn, he figured that she was probably thinking the exact same thing. His feet and legs were tired and all John really wanted to do right now was to lie down and sleep - or at least rest for just a moment. At last, he could no longer suppress the urge and yawned as well.

“Do you want to come up for a cup of coffee when you drop me off at my place?” Clara asked.

As tempting as that sounded, John knew that he should probably go to bed as quickly as possible. “Thanks for the offer, but I think I should get home.”

“Right,” she said with a sigh, “can’t leave your daughter alone for too long.”

At that, John found himself chuckling once again. “She’s twelve, so unless she decided to burn the house down, I think I can leave her alone for a while. Besides, my sister took her to the cinema tonight and I think I’m more worried about leaving her with Missy than I am about the prospect of leaving Susie on her own.”

And since Missy would have long delivered her back at her doorstep, there really was no reason for him not to accept that cup of coffee. John could certainly use a little boost before heading back home.

 

He had already gotten a glimpse of Clara’s apartment after their first date, but when she finally led him inside, John looked around and instantly determined that he liked it. It was neither messy nor particularly orderly, but it contained the right amount of coordinated chaos that he himself preferred. When Clara handed him a cup of coffee, John finally lowered himself on the sofa.

“You have a nice flat,” he remarked before he blew on the coffee to cool it down. John was tired and he sincerely hoped that this would help him wake up.

“Not as nice as your house,” she said with a shrug.

Clara settled next to him and even though he wanted to keep the conversation going, his mind felt quite empty with exhaustion and lack of sleep. After a week of working the hospital’s night shift, he needed a bit of rest.

“So, um,” Clara began carefully, but despite her efforts to hide it, she couldn’t deny that she was feeling just as exhausted. “I did the thing today.”

“The thing?” John wanted to know, arching up his eyebrows.

Clara nodded. “Dad called. He wanted to know who I’m going to bring to the wedding and I told him about you.”

“Ah, _that_ thing.” John had yet to announce it to his parents and so far, he hadn’t really come up with a suitable battle plan. And that was due to one very good reason.

“He and Linda want to meet you before the wedding,” she announced, accompanied by a rolling of her eyes.

Maybe it was because he was so tired and he took a sip from the coffee, hoping that it might help lift the mental fog that had settled around his brain, but regardless of that, he felt a twinge of panic. Meeting her parents. It was something most boyfriends dreaded and John found himself in the same state of dread all of a sudden despite the knowledge that none of it was actually real.

“I thought-” Clara began and when she broke off, John noticed the sheepish smile on her face. “I thought maybe it was time for me to properly meet your daughter before that happens.”

There it was, his one very good reason for not having told anyone yet.

“I, uh, I haven’t really told Susie yet,” he admitted and bit down on his lip to hide his embarrassment. “I know, I should have done that weeks ago, but I know she’ll be smug about having helped and I don’t want to give her the satisfaction just yet.”

To his surprise, Clara laughed. “John Smith, father of the year.”

“Don’t laugh at me,” he replied in a defensive tone, glowering at Clara. “I promise, I’ll tell her.”

“Good,” Clara concluded with a smile. “Because I’m curious to meet her properly.”

John inhaled deeply and decided to have another sip of coffee while he pondered Clara’s words. Somehow, he didn’t doubt for a second that she was actually eager to meet his daughter which was exactly why she was the most perfect fake girlfriend he could have chosen.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *looks out of the hiding hole* Ooops, looks like I've skipped a posting day there. Thank you guys for all your sweet comments!

John’s neck was aching. Given his age, it wasn’t an unusual occurrence, but today, it seemed worse than it usually was and he was only just starting to wake up. He breathed in deeply and soon noticed an unfamiliar scent in the air. It was sweet, like perfume or fabric softener, but even though he liked being surrounded by it, it wasn’t one that belonged in his bedroom. When he finally opened his eyes, John realised why that was. He wasn’t in his bedroom at all and the cause of his aching neck was a sofa that hadn’t been so comfortable after all.

At first, John didn’t see a reason to panic. He and Clara had both fallen asleep on opposite ends of the sofa, but then he became aware of the sunlight and eventually, the large clock that told him it was early Sunday morning.

“Crap,” he uttered instantly and jumped to his feet. He had left Susan alone all night! Quickly, he took a deep breath, still determined not to freak out. His daughter was twelve and quite capable of preparing her own breakfast and it wasn’t as if she had never stayed on her own while he had been called to the hospital, but this time, John didn’t have work to serve as an excuse. This time, Susan would want to know where he had been if he didn’t manage to get home before she woke up.

Carefully, John leaned forward and placed his hand on Clara’s shoulder while a brief memory of their embrace crossed his mind. Hugging her had felt quite nice and John found himself wondering whether it would be repeated, but now was not the time and place. “Clara?” he whispered quietly.

She uttered a small, sleepy sound of content and adjusted her position, but she didn’t open her eyes just yet, so John had to try again.

“Clara,” he said in a hushed voice, “I have to leave.”

Finally, her eyes flickered open and when she looked at him, she did so with a sense of confusion and bewilderment until at last, a smile appeared on her face.

“Did we fall asleep?” she asked as she stretched out her arms. At some point, Clara started to flinch and John guessed that she, too, felt the revenge of a night spent on the sofa in her neck.

John granted her an apologetic smile. “I’m afraid so,” he admitted. “Sorry, but I have to get back home. I don’t want Susie to worry.”  
Even though she obviously needed a moment to process his words in her sleepy mind, Clara nodded eventually. Then, she sat up on the sofa. “I’m going to make you a coffee to go.”

“No need,” John said quickly and before he could think better of it, before he could talk himself out of this stupidity, he bent forward in a swift movement and placed a kiss on Clara’s cheek. “See you soon.”

* * *

John sneaked back into the house as quietly as a human could and even that, he feared, wouldn’t be enough. Never before had he been so aware of the smallest sounds, the scratching of the key as it was inserted in the lock, the scuffing of his shoes as they met the floor, the simple and plain weight of his body as it weighed down on the creaking tiles and, at last, the clicking of the door as it carefully slid back into the frame. John held his breath and listened and only when he was met with silence did he dare to breathe again. He his daughter was probably still asleep.

As he blew the air out between his teeth, John made his way deeper into his home and his mind instantly went back to the moment of goodbye he had shared with Clara. A kiss on the cheek. John supposed that it could have been worse, but if there was a chance for him to take it back, he would. Wasn’t it slightly embarrassing that a man like him enjoyed being close to a young woman like Clara? Wasn’t it a little… creepy? Was he making her feel uncomfortable? That was the last thing John wanted and even though she had initiated the hug last night, that didn’t mean she was fine with the little peck or the fact that he had fallen asleep on her sofa. Then again, maybe she hadn’t minded it at all and they would have to be at least a little affectionate with each other if they were hoping to pass as a couple. John would ask Clara about it when he saw her again.

Entering the kitchen, John noticed how hungry he really was after the shock of falling asleep at Clara’s place had finally worn off and he wondered whether Susan would appreciate it if he made something special for breakfast. Maybe he could whip up a few omelettes or they could have-

“Busted!”

John almost screamed when Susan jumped out from behind the kitchen counter and he uttered a gasp at the surprise before his heart rate finally began to settle again.

“Oh my God, Susan!” John snapped at her as he reached out to touch his chest. “Do you want to be an orphan because you came quite close to giving me a heart attack!”

His daughter, however, chuckled in response and slowly but surely, John realised with a sinking heart that his careful sneaking around had been for nothing. Susan had long noticed his absence.

Susan’s laughter soon turned into a mischievous grin as she crossed her arms in front of her chest and looked up at him. “You left your daughter alone for the whole night. I think she deserves an explanation,” she said.

At first, John merely glowered at her in response. He didn’t want to admit that she had helped him by setting him up with Clara because that would mean endorsing her going behind his back. But what else could he do? Besides, Clara had already expressed her wish of wanting to meet Susan and if they wanted to be taken for a proper couple by their parents, it was vital for his daughter and fake girlfriend to meet eventually.

“I went to a concert,” John admitted eventually. “With Clara.”

“Ha!” his daughter exclaimed happily. “I knew it!”

“Don’t get smug,” John warned her by raising his index finger at her. “I’m still mad that you messaged her behind my back and tricked me into going to that café.”

Still, his daughter grinned at him.

“I said stop that,” he growled, but it was becoming hard to really stay mad at her. Yes, she should have asked him, but her good intentions had paid off in the end, hadn’t they? John had found Clara and they were having a great time together.

“I told you she seemed nice,” his daughter insisted. “And I bet she was happy when you changed your mind.”

Clara was indeed happy when he had changed his mind, but he wasn’t going to give Susan the satisfaction. At least not right away. Instead, he decided to steer the topic in a different direction.

“Anyway, Clara wants to meet you,” John announced. He had no idea when that would happen or what the circumstances of their first meeting should be. How did single parents introduce their children to a new partner? John had to admit that he had no idea and he would have to do some research.

Once more, Susan grinned. “Can we go to Disneyland?”

His gaze darkened instantly. “You were naughty when you tricked me into meeting Clara. Naughty children don’t get to go to Disneyland.”

“Do they get breakfast? Because I’m kind of hungry.”

John uttered a sigh and because he didn’t feel like ignoring his rumbling stomach for much longer, he decided to let it go for now. Susan knew, so that was a weight lifted off his shoulders and just as he had expected, she was happy with the devious arrangement between him and Clara. For now, John could lean back, have breakfast with his daughter and continue to ignore the memory of the brief kiss he had given Clara this morning.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the lovely comments, guys :) Also thank you for being so forgiving about my forgetfulness :D

Clara smiled when John opened the door and she swiftly held up two bags of crisps. “I brought snacks,” she announced happily before John beckoned her to step inside.

If she was entirely honest, she hadn’t expected John to act so quickly when last time, he had confessed that he still hadn’t told his daughter about their arrangement. Now that Clara was aware that Susan knew, she wasn’t sure what was stranger: the fact that John had been keeping their alibi relationship a secret or the fact that he had told his twelve-year-old daughter all about them, but maybe it didn’t even matter all that much. Faking a relationship wasn’t something she had thought about so very often, so whatever rules applied, Clara didn’t know them.  
Once inside the kitchen, Clara realised that John and Susan had already started to prepare for their game night and her mouth was beginning to water at the sight of a plate full of mini pizzas, ready for the oven.

“That looks delicious,” she remarked, but as she turned her eyes back on John, she noticed that he looked a little… conflicted. She furrowed her eyebrows at him. “Is everything alright?”

That slightly terrified look on his face suddenly scared her. Had he not told Susan after all? Was he going to tell her to leave? Was Susan not okay with their arrangement? Was he blowing off the entire thing?

“I wanted to ask you something,” he confessed and lowered his gaze to his own two feet. Whatever it was, Clara knew that it had to be serious, so she braced herself for the worst. “Do I… uh…. do I make you uncomfortable?”

Clara hadn’t meant to laugh, she really hadn’t, but when she had expected the worst, this silly question just made everything seem ridiculous all of a sudden. John looked up and the confusion on his face only grew.

“What makes you think that?” Clara asked him, still chuckling.

After a few moments of hesitation, he shrugged. “I don’t know. The hug, the cheek kiss, I thought you might… think that crossed the line.”

When Clara laughed again, it was a different laugh and she smiled at him as sincerely as she could. “I thought it was sweet,” she reassured him quickly. “Besides, when I picked you to be my fake boyfriend, I did it because I like you. If you had made me feel uncomfortable, I would have never come back for a second meeting.”

Finally, John seemed relieved as he blew the air out between his lips. “Good,” he concluded. “Because I want you to have a good time. I may not be your proper boyfriend, but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy… this.”

John gestured around the room, pointing at the pile of board games and the pizzas and Clara smiled at him in return. She was having a good time already, she had been having a good time ever since she had met him at that café. So to show him that she was fine with all of it, Clara stepped forward, crossed the distance between them and pecked him on the cheek in return.

“There,” she said with a smile, “we’re even now.”

After the initial shock had subsided, a smile spread across John’s lips and it looked so sweet on him, so sincere that Clara felt the sudden urge to go further. She had no idea where it was coming from, no idea why she was even thinking that, but as she looked at his lips, she wondered what it would be like to kiss them.

The sounds of footsteps tore her out of her thoughts and Clara spun around just in time to see Susan enter the kitchen. They had already met briefly when Clara had first come to their home, but now was the time for a proper introduction, so she smiled at John’s daughter.

“Hi, I’m Clara,” she announced happily. “And you must be Susan.”

The girl nodded and for some reason, Clara recognised John in her. She didn’t look that much like him, but she had the same sweet smile that somehow made its way into her heart in an instant.

“I’ve heard so much about you. Nice to finally meet you in person,” Clara said sincerely.

“Will you take me to Disneyland?”

Susan’s question took Clara a little by surprise and when she heard John groan next to her, she figured that it had to be some kind of inside joke, one that John didn’t find funny.

“I’ve already tried to tell Dad that a family trip to Disneyland would look really convincing,” Susan argued. “People wouldn’t doubt for a second that you’re an actual couple.”

For the second time since she had stepped into this house, Clara couldn’t help but laugh. She also had to admit that Susan was a very smart kid.

“Well, you’re not wrong about that,” Clara agreed.

“We’re not taking her to Disneyland,” John growled from behind her back.

Chuckling, Clara turned her attention towards Susan once more. “Your Dad is right, Disneyland is a bit much, but I may have a different idea,” she said, adding a mischievous smile until Susan finally looked intrigued. “I’m from Blackpool and we don’t have a Disneyland, but our piers are pretty fun, too. That might be worth a little trip if your Dad can take a weekend off?”

As she threw John another look, she realised that he seemed to be considering her answer and that he didn’t appear all that opposed to the idea. Nevertheless, he groaned at his daughter in return. “We’ll see about that,” he said. “Now, how about we heat up dinner and I beat you two at Monopoly?”

 

A few hours later, there was nothing left of the pizzas or John’s determination to beat them because he had lost when Clara and Susan had begun to split the most valuable streets among each other and built hotels wherever John landed. After the frustration of a lost game, they had moved on to Risk. However, Clara noticed with delight that he wasn’t luckier at that either. While Clara had spread out across Asia, Africa and parts of Europe, Susan was in control of America and John had been pushed back to Australia which he was only just holding by occupying Siam with the majority of his army. Sadly, it was the one country Clara still needed to win the game. When it was her turn to attack, she looked at John.

“I want Siam,” she announced, smiling to herself. “But I’m not unreasonable. Withdraw your armies and I won’t have to destroy them.”

John scoffed in return. “You can’t have Siam,” he said crossly. Well, Clara hadn’t expected it to work, not after he had already lost India to her. He returned her gaze and looked straight at her with all the determination he had left. “What if it’s your task to eliminate another player? I’ll be easy game for you. Siam is my buffer zone and you can’t have it. Besides, you’ll complete Asia. What does that get you? Seven additional armies? No, thank you.”

Clara growled at him, but if she wanted to win the game, she had no chance but to attack. Briefly, she glanced at the board once more and saw the intimidating number of John’s armies that hardly fit into the small country of Siam and she looked at how she had spread her own all across Asia to protect herself from Susan’s potential attacks. Then, she had another idea. She might not be able to strike a deal with John, but Susan seemed to have little interest in attacking her.

“Susan, are you in the mood for a deal?” she asked.

The girl looked up. “What sort of deal?”

“I’ll withdraw my additional troops from Europe if you promise not to attack any of my Asian countries for three rounds.”

John’s daughter seemed to consider it for a while, but she didn’t seem uninterested. If Clara had read her movements corrected, she needed Europe just like Clara needed Siam, but she couldn’t attack as long as John was stacking his armies there.

“Penalty?” she asked eventually.

“If either of us breaks the contract during these three rounds, the other gets ten of their armies,” Clara suggested.

Susan replied with a nod. “Deal.”

As promised, Clara removed her armies from the few European countries she was occupying and moved them towards Siam. With a bit of luck, she would be able to beat John the next time it was her turn. John didn’t do anything. He merely collected the few armies he was receiving for Australia and placed them next to the other armies in Siam just to make Clara’s victory a little more difficult. As expected, Susan began her endeavour of conquering the rest of Europe and when she had finished, the drew a card and handed the dices to Clara.

It was now or never. She pointed everything she had at Siam, but would it be enough to beat John?

“I’m going for Siam,” she announced and handed him the red dices. She threw, then did he. John lost two of his armies and Clara exclaimed happily before moving forward with her attack by throwing the dices once more. This time, she wasn’t so lucky and John beat her. At the third attempt, each of them lost one army, but there were still too many left in Siam and Clara had no hopes of conquering it this time. She decided to wait.

John, once again, didn’t do much except to replace the armies he had lost and the game moved on to Susan who finished her campaign through Europe.

Clara decided to attack again and this time, she was going to give everything she had. She might lose a lot of armies, but so would John and she received more each time because of the sheer number of countries she occupied. She could win this, Clara was determined to win this. She threw the dices and lost two armies, but Clara wouldn’t let it discourage her, so she tried again and again and again until there were only two of them left in Siam, but she was running out of armies as well.

“Next time,” Clara growled at him in a playful manner.

“Never,” John replied, grinning at her. “I told you. Siam is mine and you can’t have it.”

“Well, it’s Susan’s turn now.”

However, John’s daughter cleared her throat and when they looked at her, she was grinning broadly and merely shrugged. “I won.”

“What?!” John and Clara asked in unison.

Susan looked smug when she turned her card around. “I had to conquer North and South America and Europe and hold it for one round,” she explained happily. “I did. I won.”

Clara hated losing at board games, especially when she had come so close to winning herself, but when she looked into Susan’s happy face and realised that this entire evening had been nothing but a success for their primary goal, she decided that losing at a board game wasn’t necessarily bad, not when she had managed to bond with her fake boyfriend’s daughter.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for those lovely comments :) They always put a smile on my face!

Once Susan had retreated to bed, Clara sank down on the sofa and when John handed her a bottle of beer, she accepted thankfully, not very eager to go home just yet. Clara had enjoyed the evening more than she had thought she would and finally meeting his daughter in person had been a true pleasure. Before tonight, she had spent quite some time worrying about it and wondering whether their arrangement would make it awkward. It hadn’t. It had been quite the opposite. Susan was a wonderful child and - much to Clara’s frustration - very good at board games.

As John sank down on the sofa next to her, he heard him exhale sharply. “That went well,” he determined, a look of relief on his face.

“It did,” Clara confirmed with a smile. “Susie is a wonderful kid. You did a great job.”

He turned his head and for a while, Clara couldn’t read the look on his face until he cracked a smile at last. “That’s a huge compliment coming from a teacher,” he replied, but the smile faded soon and his face took on a more sombre expression. “That’s one of the reasons my parents are so eager for me to find a girlfriend. They don’t think I can do it on my own. They think a child needs a mother and a father.”

Clara shook her head. “In an ideal world, every child has two loving parents, but that’s not what it’s like, is it? And you’re dedicated to her, you two seem to have a great relationship. I don’t see why that wouldn’t be enough.”

John uttered a sad laugh. “My parents and my sister think I won’t be able to handle the whole puberty thing and, truth be told, I’m a little terrified as well.”

She made a dismissive gesture. “You two got this far, I think you can manage. And look at me,” Clara said, pointing down at herself. “Even my father managed and he’s basically useless.”

Suddenly feeling his gaze on her, Clara turned her head and found John staring at her, a question on his lips that he obviously didn’t dare to ask.

“My mother died when I was little,” she explained. “But kids aren’t as alone as you might think. Nothing can replace a mother, but there will be grandmothers and friends and teachers. You said you had a sister, so there’s another role model for Susie.”

To her surprise, John snorted. “You haven’t met my sister yet,” he replied and took a sip from his beer. “But when you do, I’ll remind you that you said that.”

Clara wasn’t sure whether she wanted to find out what was wrong with his sister, but she was fairly certain that she was going to anyway. After all, as a fake couple, they would attend a family gathering together at some point. Then, it suddenly hit her. At some point, their charade would be over and afterwards, Clara would probably never see John again. The thought of that caused a strange aching as the muscles in her chest tightened. She liked John. Maybe, she liked him a little too much.

Amy’s words were back in her head and right now, Clara wasn’t sure what she would answer if her best friend asked her again. Did she have a crush on John? Maybe just a small one?

“John?” Clara found herself asking before the courage left her.

He turned his head once more, looking straight at her. “Hm?”

“Are we friends?”

There was a moment of hesitation and Clara regretted asking him at all when finally, he smiled at her. “Yeah,” he replied, “I think so.”

Clara grinned at him in return as she sank back into the comfortable sofa cushions. “Good,” she concluded. Maybe, there was a way for them to remain friends even after their scheme had played out.

“You still wouldn’t have gotten Siam though,” John said casually as he leaned back as well and Clara chuckled at him in return. She would have gotten Siam and John knew it, whether he cared it to admit it or not.

* * *

When Clara woke up, she had a sort of deja vu, but then - not really. There was the aching in her neck that seemed vaguely familiar and the cushions underneath her that didn’t feel quite like her own bed, but the rest was entirely unfamiliar. Soft voices were murmuring in the background and the smell of fresh coffee and croissants hung in the air and only when Clara opened her eyes did she realise that she wasn’t in her own flat.

“Oh, good morning,” John’s voice greeted her happily and he waved at her through the open kitchen door.

Then Susan stuck her head through the crack. “Morning! We made breakfast!”

Sleepily, Clara raised her heavy body from John’s sofa and realised that someone had draped a blanket over her while she had slept and she didn’t need a lot of imagination to know that it was John. She tottered towards the kitchen, following the heavenly smell of coffee until John handed her a mug.

“Thanks,” she mumbled, then decided to investigate why she was still at his house. “Why didn’t you wake me last night?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know. It was kind of late and you looked so happy asleep,” John explained with an apologetic smile that quickly faded before he blurted out his next question. “You don’t have anywhere you need to be, do you? I don’t want you to be late because of me.”

Clara shook her head. “No, I just… didn’t really pack a toothbrush,” she replied, chuckling.

“Oh, we always keep a spare,” John said quickly and pointed towards the bathroom. “It’s in the drawer on the left side of the sink. You can use it if you like.”

“Thanks,” Clara said with a smile and she handed him the coffee mug back while she made her way to the bathroom.

Once inside, Clara locked the door behind her and took a deep breath. For some reason, she felt agitated even though she couldn’t quite tell why that was when she only remembered remnants of her dream, but she remembered John being in it and she remembered the warm, fuzzy feeling of love that she needed to distance herself from as quickly as possible.  
She had sought John out to pretend to be her boyfriend and she had done so with no intention of falling in love. Now here she was, about to have breakfast with him and his daughter like a proper family would and the fact that none of it was actually real stung a lot more than it should. She had been fighting this feeling ever since she had met him, but now Clara could deny it no longer. She wanted their romance to be real.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whohoooo :) Thank you for your sweet comments! Hope you're all staying cool in the current heatwave!

As they left the cinema and began to walk back to his car, John held the umbrella over the two of them to shield them from the rain. They hadn’t had a proper downpour in a while and he had been hoping for a storm to water his front lawn, but naturally, the rain had come at the most inconvenient moment. Clara, however, didn’t even seem to notice. In fact, John was under the impression that she was a little quieter than usual and once more, he began to wonder whether he had done something wrong.

“Did you not like the movie?” he asked carefully, glancing at Clara to see her reaction.

Her head shot up and suddenly, she looked incredibly sad. “I did, I liked it,” she replied immediately. “But I also want to cry my eyes out over it.”

John and Clara began to chuckle at the same time and he felt relieved that her silence wasn’t because of him or something he had done. However, as they continued their walk, a matter that he needed to discuss with Clara came back to John’s mind, a matter that he had tried to address all evening but just hadn’t had the courage to. It was the first step towards making their fake relationship official and it was a scary one because once they went public, there was no way back. Not that John would change his mind about Clara, but there was still a hint of guilt that he felt over lying to his mother.

“There’s something that I wanted to ask you,” he began carefully, “and you can say no, of course, because it’s not really part of our original agreement.”

“Well, what is it?” Clara wanted to know and John felt her curious gaze on him as they walked along the street.

“It’s my mother’s birthday next Sunday,” he announced. “As I’ve said, the official party is much later after my father’s birthday, but she invited me and Missy over for a cup of tea and some cake. I thought maybe you would like to join me, meet my family and the cake will be excellent. My mother is an amazing baker.”

To his surprise, Clara chuckled again. “You don’t have to sell it to me. If you want me there, I’m in. I’m actually rather curious to meet your family.”

John snorted. “That’s cause you haven’t met my sister yet,” he said, but at the same time, he had to admit that the prospect of meeting Clara’s parents scared him a little. It shouldn’t. They weren’t even dating properly, but still, the idea of being introduced to her father and stepmother was an intimidating one.

“I’m sure Missy can’t be that bad,” Clara said, but John had stopped listening.

His feet came to an abrupt halt on the pavement and Clara stopped next to him under the umbrella, but that wasn’t what John was paying attention to. His eyes were fixed on a couple kissing in a small sheltered area that wasn’t being drenched by the downpour.

“John,” Clara growled and nudged him in the ribs, “stop staring, it’s just two women kissing.”

He didn’t even hear her. Instead, he picked up his pace again and approached the women that were hiding away from the rain, but they weren’t hiding well enough for him because John could still see what was going on. Clara tried to hold him back when she realised what he was about to do, but then again, she didn’t know who the women were.

“Get a room!” John shouted and when the women spun around to look at him, he grinned at them. “You might catch a cold out here.”

The shock was written all over their faces, but he had no time to enjoy it when Clara tugged at his sleeve again.

She cleared her throat. “John, what are you doing?” Clara asked in a cheerful manner, but her smile couldn’t cover up the awkwardness that she surely felt.

“Clara,” he said proudly and gestured towards the women, “meet my sister and her… I’m sorry, um, how do I say this? Wife? Ex-wife? Soon-to-be ex-wife? Soon-to-be no-longer ex-wife?”

Even though John had seen it with his own two eyes, he still found it hard to digest in the best of ways. He had caught Missy and Lucy snogging even though his sister had proclaimed time and time again that she and her wife would never get back together.

“I should probably get going,” Lucy said and threw Missy a look that John couldn’t quite interpret. Were they back together? Was it a one-time thing? He really wanted to know now. Then, his former sister-in-law granted him a smile. “Say hi to Susie for me.”

When Lucy hurried off down the street, Missy finally straightened her jacket and stepped forward, glowering at John. He could tell that she was about to yell at him, but then her eyes wandered towards Clara instead and she smiled.

“I see you found a fake girlfriend after all,” his sister said, grinning. “I have to admit, your taste has improved.”

“Missy, this is Clara,” John explained, nodding towards his date. “Clara, this is Missy, my sister, the one I told you all those scary tales about.”

“Hi,” Clara said and raised her hand to wave at Missy.

“Are you going to tell me what is going on between you and Lucy? You said you were over, in fact, you swore there was no way you would ever get back together,” John went on. He just had to know because if there was a chance that his sister and her wife might get back together, he would be happy for her.

“Don’t change the subject, John,” Missy replied, gesturing towards Clara. “I think we should focus on the development in your nonexistent love life. She’s pretty, but she’s a bit young, isn’t she?”

John opened his mouth to protest, to insist that they talked about Lucy instead, but he was thrown off when Missy stepped closer and examined Clara. Yes, Clara was younger, but John hadn’t thought it would matter given the circumstances. Now, he wasn’t entirely sure. Would his parents react badly to Clara’s age? Would they give her a hard time? Would Missy? The last thing he wanted was to put Clara in an awkward position.

“Clara and I have a lot in common,” he said instead. “I’m sure our parents will like her.”

“And if not, then we can consider ourselves lucky that it’s not a real relationship,” Clara said in an attempt at humour. She smiled, but John could tell how uncomfortable she was under Missy’s scrutinising gaze.

When his sister had finished examining her, Missy nodded approvingly. “Well, she’s not exactly what I had in mind, but she’ll do, I suppose.”

Clara’s gaze darkened, as did John’s. Missy had no idea just how perfect Clara really was and with a sinking heart, John realised that the evening wasn’t going quite as well as he had hoped it would.

“The question is,” his sister continued, placing her hands on her hips while she continued to look them over, “can you pull it off?”

John scoffed. “Of course we can. I already told a colleague to see if it would work and it did.”

“Yeah, and we have a cute story about how we met and how awkward our first date was,” Clara added, her voice growing more confident as she spoke.

Missy didn’t seem all that convinced as she raised her eyebrows at them and John dreaded whatever was to follow because, knowing his sister, he could tell that he wasn’t going to like it.

“Alright, let’s put that to the test, shall we? Show me a kiss.”

“What?!” both John and Clara asked in unison. Missy couldn’t be serious.

His sister gestured impatiently. “You say you can pull it off, so show me a kiss. Can’t be that hard, can it?”

John glowered at her in response. “I know what you’re trying to do. You’re trying to distract me from Lucy, but I’m not going to let that go. I want to know what’s going on between you two and I’m not going to bother Clara just so you can have your distraction.”

Suddenly, John felt Clara’s hand on his arm and he turned around to look at her. Her features had softened a little, but if he wasn’t entirely mistaken, there was a hint of fear in her eyes.

“She’s not wrong though,” Clara admitted quietly. “I mean, I doubt we’re going to snog in front of our parents, but they might think it’s a bit weird if we don’t kiss at all.”

“There you go,” Missy announced proudly. “You heard the girl. Now kiss her!”

John threw one last dirty look in his sister’s direction before he turned towards Clara once again and all of a sudden, he felt scared. And nervous. Was she really asking him to kiss her?

If he was entirely honest and listened not to his head but to his heart, there was a part of him that wanted to kiss her, a part of him that would love to see whether her lips felt as soft as they looked, a part that wanted it just for the sake of it. But what about her? What about Clara? John couldn’t come up with a single reason why she would want to kiss him.

“Let’s do it,” Clara whispered softly and when she pushed herself up tiptoes, John forgot that Missy was there, he forgot they were standing in the middle of a busy London street and the rain was pouring down on their umbrella.

John leaned down and counted the seconds while they closed the distance between them, he counted the heartbeats that suddenly came so much faster when their lips finally met and he realised as soon as they kissed that the reason had nothing to do with any of it. He just wanted to kiss Clara and in that terrible moment he felt the truth. John liked it a little more than he probably should.

A sudden clapping sound tore him out of this dream and he wished that it could have lasted just a moment longer, but when Missy began to laugh, John was yanked back into reality.

“That’ll do nicely,” Missy announced. “And I should get going. Have a night evening.”

John was speechless and he wasn’t sure whether it was because of the kiss or his sister or whatever insane reason, but as he watched Missy walk away and felt Clara’s hand still on his arm, John thought that maybe the whole thing had been a bad idea after all.


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *muffled squealing* Thank you guys so much for all your lovely comments!!!

In a way, dating Danny was easier than not-dating John because she had never had to worry about meeting his parents. Clara kept telling herself that it wasn’t important, that in a few months, she would never have to see John or his parents ever again if they didn’t want to, but she still found her heart hammering in her chest as they stepped out of the car. Not only was it the prospect of meeting John’s parents, but there was also the matter of the kiss that was still on Clara’s mind and she desperately tried to band the thoughts about it from her head. It was just a trick his strange sister had played on them, nothing more.

“You look lovely today.” 

John’s voice suddenly tore her out of her thoughts and Clara turned her head as they approached the home. He was smiling at her, reassuring her that the green summer dress she had taken an hour to pick out had been a good decision.

“Thank you,” Clara replied, smiling back at him. Then, another matter popped back into her head. “Are you sure it’s okay that I didn’t bring a present?”

“You brought flowers,” he reassured her. “That’s more than enough.”

John didn’t lead her inside the assisted living facility. Instead, he took a small path around the house and soon, Clara found herself in a beautiful garden and she couldn’t help but think that John and his sister had really chosen a lovely spot for their parents to live. This wasn’t the usual dreary retirement home, this was a place that Clara could see herself moving into in her eighties.

“This is a nice home,” Clara found herself saying as she looked around. “Do your parents like it here?”

John nodded. “It took them a while to settle in, but yeah. They would have preferred to stay in Scotland, but they know it’s for the best. They have their freedom here, their own flat, company and there’s always someone checking in on them, making sure they’re alright.”

“There they are!” a shrill voice called from across the lawn and even though she had only met her once, Clara instantly recognised John’s sister.

Silently, Clara prayed that this meeting would be less awkward than the last, but she was beginning to understand why John had repeatedly warned her about his sister. Next to Missy, Clara spotted an elderly couple who could only be John’s parents. She took a deep breath and braced herself for the impending introduction.

John’s father was the first to shake her hand, but he didn’t smile, not even at John as he greeted his son, but as Clara moved on to his mother, she found a joyful expression on the woman’s face. Somehow, she reminded her of her own grandmother.

“Hello dear,” John’s mother said sweetly, smiling broadly at her. “You must be Clara. I’m afraid Missy already ruined the surprise by telling us John would bring his new girlfriend.”

Clara smiled at her in return. It was hard not to given the warm greeting and the aura of friendliness that surrounded John’s mother.

“Happy Birthday, Mrs Smith,” Clara said and handed over the bouquet of flowers.

As John’s mother took them from her hand, she laughed. “Please, call me Elise. I’m too old for formalities.”

With a sigh of relief, Clara sank down in her seat and watched John hand his mother a present which she unwrapped only to complain afterwards that he wasn’t supposed to spend so much money on her. Slowly, her heartbeat began to settle. His mother seemed lovey, his father didn’t talk much and if it wasn’t for Missy’s continuous looks, Clara would have almost felt comfortable.

Then, John’s sister began to speak - much to Clara’s dismay. “John, why don’t you enlighten us about how you came by this lovely, young woman?”

John blushed and - unbeknownst to his parents - Clara watched him throw Missy a dirty look. They had a story and if they stuck to it, nothing could go wrong, but honestly, she had hoped that no one would ask just in case there were holes in their narrative that they had missed. When he didn’t respond immediately, Clara took the initiative.

“We met at the hospital,” she announced, “I was his patient.”

Missy gasped, a fake, exaggerated sound. “John, you naughty boy! You didn’t just ask out a patient, did you?”

“Well, even if he did,” his mother threw in, smiling at them, “it seems to have worked out well.”

“Oh, don’t give me that,” Missy made a dismissive gesture. “I need all the details. Come on, give me a good story.”

“You know the story,” John growled in her direction, probably wondering what she was playing at. Missy knew well enough that they had met on Alibi.

“I have to admit, I’m a little curious, too,” Elise said after a moment, looking towards John. “The last time we spoke, you didn’t mention Clara with a single syllable.”

John smiled apologetically. “It was all rather fresh,” he lied.

“I got a concussion at work,” Clara explained, sticking to the story they had come up with. “One of the kids had kicked a ball and hit my head and I was feeling dizzy, so a colleague drove me to the hospital.”

John’s sister frowned at her. “You work at Coal Hill School, don’t you? That’s not exactly near the hospital where John works.”

Clara wasn’t entirely sure why she was doing it when she was fully aware of the fact that none of it was real, but she had found that one hole in the narrative and she was prodding it. Determined not to let it throw her off, Clara decided to lie. “It’s not, but there was a road accident and we had to drive all the way through the city when my colleague said it was better to just drive to another hospital. That’s how I met John.”

John’s mother chuckled to herself. “And let me guess, it took you a while to get through his stubborn head?”

“It did, actually,” Clara replied, giggling. “I was… curious about him, but I wasn’t sure whether I liked him and whether he liked me back, so I had to fake an injury.”

“I saw through that, by the way,” John added and winked in Clara’s direction.

“He still made me come back for a few check-ups until I finally cracked and admitted I had made all up and asked him when he would finally ask me out.”

“Which I did,” he confirmed with a smile.

“That first date was a disaster, thanks to me,” she admitted. “I thought I’d never hear from you again.”

“Awwww,” Missy hummed next to them, but there was no sincerity in her voice whatsoever. “How sweet.”

Even their mother was beginning to notice Missy’s strange reaction, but maybe she put it down to her daughter’s recent separation which John had told Clara about. However, she soon turned her attention towards Clara and smiled.

“I need some help bringing the plates out. Would you mind helping me?”

“Not at all,” Clara confirmed.

“I’ll help, too,” John announced, but his mother stopped him with a gesture.

“No need. Clara and I have it under control.”

 

The nervousness was back when Clara followed John’s mother into the building and maybe it was the smell of old people, but suddenly, she felt a little nauseous. To be in John’s company and to tell the made-up story about how they had met was one thing, but alone with just his mother, Clara felt a little helpless. However, some of that evaporated as she stepped into the kitchen where the lovely scent of freshly baked goods filled the air.

“Oh, that smells amazing,” she noted and breathed in deeply. Yes, the scent was helping a little.

Elise granted her a smile. “It’s John’s favourite. I can give you the recipe if you like.”

“Oh, that won’t be necessary,” Clara argued, knowing it was unlikely she would ever bake a cake for John. Then again, she might just do that. “Although-”

Before Clara had even changed her mind, John’s mother had pulled a small note out of a drawer and handed it to her.

“Here,” she said, stuffing the note into Clara’s satchel with a smile. “You can make it for him on his birthday. He’ll love that.”

Suddenly, she realised one important fact. They had talked about all sorts of things, but John had never mentioned his birthday even though she had told him hers. Her thoughts must have been written on her forehead because Elise smiled knowingly.

“He’s refusing to tell you, isn’t he? Well, let me tell you a little secret,” she said, dropping her voice until it was hardly more than a whisper, “it’s in two weeks.”

Clara grinned at her in response, knowing that she would most definitely surprise John with a cake two weeks from now.

However, his mother’s features grew a little more serious as she looked at Clara and for a moment, she wondered whether Elise had seen through all of it.

“You like John, don’t you?” she wanted to know.

Clara, completely taken aback by the strange phrasing, didn’t know what to say.

“I’m asking because I love my son and, like any mother, I want the best for him. He’s never been an easy person, full of principles and so stubborn, but he has a heart of gold that can love unconditionally. Sometimes, it’s not easy to get through to him. Young people these days are so quick to confuse infatuation with love and once it fades, they give up. I don’t want that to happen to John when he already had his heart broken by his wife’s death. But if you _like_ John, if you truly like the person he is, you will come to love him for that, I know it.”

Something strange tugged at Clara’s heart, something she had already felt during their brief kiss and Clara knew that his mother was right. It shouldn’t be, but it was the truth. She truly liked the person that he was and maybe, she could actually fall in love with him regardless of their arrangement. Did his mother know that? Was she able to tell just by looking at her? Clara couldn’t say, but she needed to say _something_ , so she nodded.

“I do,” she replied truthfully.

In response, his mother smiled kindly and before Clara knew what was happening, she was handed a plate filled with cake. “Let’s not keep them waiting, shall we?”

Clara inhaled deeply and followed Elise back outside, but even though she tried her best to push the thoughts aside, a feeling of uneasiness had settled over her, whispering in her ear that maybe, she had made a big mistake.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the lovely comments, guys :) And also thank you for keeping your fingers crossed for me during my exam period! I received my certificate yesterday and officially became a digital and print media designer :)
> 
> I won't be able to post a chapter on Saturday as I'm organising my best friend's hen party/event, but a new chapter will be back on Sunday!

Her phone lit up, announcing a new message and Clara reached across the lunch table to retrieve it. Before she had even unlocked it, Clara could feel her heart skip a little beat in the hope that it might be John and she scolded herself for that thought as soon as it came. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. Clara wasn’t supposed to develop actual feelings for the man she was pretending to date just to annoy her stepmother and get her off her back, but for some unfathomable reason, it was exactly what was happening.

Yet, it wasn’t so unfathomable after all as Clara was slowly beginning to understand. She had chosen John for the exact same reasons she would have chosen an actual boyfriend and now her perfect plan had come back to bite her. Clara had liked his looks, she had liked his humour and she had liked how much they actually had in common. Under normal circumstances, John would have been the perfect match - if it wasn’t for the fact that he wasn’t looking for anyone and neither was she, except that her heart seemed to think otherwise.

When Clara unlocked her phone at last, she noticed with a sinking feeling that the message hadn’t come from John but from her best friend and she wanted to know how her weekend had gone. Naturally, Clara had told Amy all about the upcoming meeting with John’s parents and with a sigh, she now put her phone aside, not actually eager to talk about it any longer.  
Had she been wrong to assume that she wasn’t ready for a new relationship? Did her blossoming feelings for John mean that Clara was ready to embark on a new romantic adventure?

“Hey, is this seat taken?”

A voice interrupted her train of thoughts and she looked up into Adrian’s smiling face. Today, he wore his bowtie a little askew and he looked a bit dishevelled in general - a stark contrast to his usually neat appearance. Clara assumed that he had had a rough start to his day, so she gestured towards the seat with a smile.

“No, have a seat,” she offered kindly, appreciating the distraction from her own emotional turmoil. As her eyes trailed over Adrian’s looks once more, Clara couldn’t help but ask. “Rough morning?”

Her colleague snorted. “I overslept, missed my bus, second bus never came, so I ended up walking here - much to my students’ delight.”

Clara chuckled in response. “I can imagine they enjoyed their free period.”

On the table, the phone buzzed again and Clara felt herself hoping that this time, it would be a message from John, hating herself just a little for that hope. What was she going to do once their charade was over, when they each went back to their lives? For now, she decided not to check her messages when suddenly, Adrian cleared his throat next to her.

A silence followed, ended by a cautious, quiet voice. “Um, I… I recently discovered this cute café not far from here,” he said, nodding towards her coffee cup. “You like coffee. I thought maybe… you would like to check it out with me?”

Clara turned her head and looked at him for a moment, but her colleague wasn’t meeting her gaze. Instead, he suddenly seemed to find how own shoes rather fascinating. It took a while for his words to sink in, but when she finally realised that Adrian was asking her out on a date, Clara’s mouth fell open. No sound came out for almost a minute.

“I’m sorry,” Adrian stammered eventually when he managed to look at her again. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked. We’re colleagues and Danny, well… it hasn’t been that long.”

Clara had no idea what to say, no idea what to reply to him because Adrian’s suggestion took her completely by surprise. Then again, it wasn’t really that surprising, was it? She and Adrian had known each other for years and on occasion, they had spent their lunch break together at a nearby café, but none of that had ever indicated… more. His proposal, however, sounded like much, much more.

Not knowing what else to do, Clara granted him a smile. “I’m not entirely sure,” she replied. “My life is kind of… complicated right now.”

“You mean you’re not yet over Danny? It’s alright, I mean, he was a great guy, he-”

“It’s not Danny, it’s… well, complicated. I hired a fake date to piss off my stepmother.” Clara didn’t quite know why, but the words just tumbled out of her mouth like that, but once she had spoken them, she felt a sense of relief even though her friends knew and her grandmother knew. But they didn’t know the whole story, did they?

At first, Adrian looked incredulous, but slowly, the realisation began to dawn on him. “You’re in love with him?”

Clara shrugged her shoulders, not sure of what she felt, but Adrian’s smile lifted her spirits.

“How about we grab a coffee after class today and you tell me all about it?”

She smiled at him in return, knowing that this time, it was definitely meant as a coffee date among friends and that was something she was more than comfortable with. “That would be great.”

* * *

John wasn’t entirely sure how it had happened, but in between having his coffee and munching his sandwich, he had somehow agreed to take over his colleague’s on-call duty for the weekend, all the while praying that he wouldn’t actually be called. But how could he deny a desperate colleague help when he was asked for it?

“That really sucks with the weekend duty, doesn’t it?” Martha Jones’ voice tore him out of his thoughts and John looked up into his colleague’s face.

John merely shrugged. “Dr Sturgeon sounded desperate. Besides, we only switched. I’ll get the next weekend off which is just as fine by me.”

Martha poked around in her salad, but for some reason, she gave him a curious look and a strange smile that John didn’t quite understand. “Next weekend isn’t your birthday though,” she argued. “And I’m sure you and Clara had plans.”

In response, John narrowed his eyes at her and somehow, it surprised him that the matter with Dr Sturgeon had actually managed to take his mind off Clara. Lately, she seemed to be occupying his thoughts a lot and at first, John hadn’t minded it so very much, but the meeting with his mother had changed that.

His mother loved Clara. She had told him so in a phone call the day after they had stopped by for tea and cake and once again, John had felt a twinge of guilt over lying to his mother about everything and he found himself wishing that he wouldn’t have to not just because he would be honest, but because being in a relationship with Clara was something he wouldn’t mind at all.  
When he noticed that Martha was still giving him an expectant look, John glowered at her. “How do you know about my birthday?” he asked in return, unaware he had ever shared that information with… well, anyone. That was also the reason he and Clara couldn’t have made plans and suddenly, John felt a hint of regret.

His colleague shrugged, then nodded towards the kitchen notice board that was plastered with postcards. “There’s a list hanging there.”

John let his gaze wander over the board that he hadn’t actually looked at in all the years he had been working there.

“So, you didn’t have plans with Clara?” Martha pressed in an attempt to get the conversation going. She had been curious ever since John had started to mention Clara.

He sighed audibly and leaned back in his chair, looking at his colleague for a long moment while considering his options. Then, the words just came out of his mouth like that and he couldn’t stop them even if he had wanted to. “I think I may be falling in love with her,” he admitted carefully. Even saying it felt stupid because it made it even clearer that he was a silly, old man who was falling for a woman he could never have, not really.

Martha chuckled. “You say that as if it’s a bad thing.”

“Isn’t it?” John asked back. “I was happy before I met her and this has the potential of making me unhappy if it turns out that Clara and I don’t want the same things.”

To his surprise, his colleague smiled at him. “Yeah, but what if you do want the same things?”

John laughed at that, but it was a sad laugh because he knew that the contract he had made with Clara didn’t cover love and there was no way she would ever truly want to be with an old fool like him.


	21. Chapter 21

John stared grumpily at his daughter, all the while hoping that she would notice, but Susan was deep in her school project that she never even looked up and at some point, he started to curse his life choices. Not all of them, of course, not Susan, but a few of the others that he had made quite recently.

It was Sunday afternoon and John was bored out of his mind.

“I want to do something!” he proclaimed after a while and jumped up from his chair, hoping to pass on his state of restlessness to his daughter.

Yet when Susan lifted her head, she only glowered at him.

“It’s my birthday,” John insisted. “Who allowed you to do homework on my birthday?”

His daughter took a deep breath, indicating to him that a long story was to follow. “You were the one who said you didn’t want a fuss and you also said it was okay for me to go to Lisa’s place later to work on our school project, so don’t complain now.”

Growling to himself, John sank back on his chair and he watched Susan round up her things to pack into her bag. Had he known how bored he would be, John would have made plans - until he remembered that he was on duty today and any minute now, his beeper could go off and call him to an emergency at the hospital. Why were there never any emergencies when he really needed one?

When Susan had finished packing her school supplies for the project, she stood up and opened her mouth, probably ready to tell him to watch a movie, but the doorbell cut her sentence off before she had a chance to speak it.

John frowned at her in reply. “Didn’t you say you were going to Lisa’s place?”

“Maybe it’s for you,” she said with a shrug and went to open the door.

Listening from the living room, John couldn’t discern whether it was Susan’s friend in front of the house or someone else because they talked in hushed voices and when he had had enough of the whispering, he rose from his seat again to have a look - and found a surprise waiting for him.

“Happy Birthday!” Clara announced happily, beaming so brightly at him that John instantly forgot about the boredom he had experienced in the past few hours.

She was holding up a cake, grinning at him with an expression of pride as if she expected something of him. What was she expecting? Suddenly, it came to his mind.

“Thank you,” John uttered, but he couldn’t quite shake the surprise from his voice. Then, he considered something else. “Uh, how do you know it’s my birthday? I always make sure not to tell people.”

Clara shrugged, still grinning. “Your mother told me.”

“Thank God,” Susan threw in, rolling her eyes. “Because he’s been complaining about being bored for hours. And I have to go now. Save me a piece, will you? And think about Blackpool!”

His daughter was out of the door before either of them could say a word and when it slammed shut behind Susan, John and Clara turned to look at each other. A few seconds passed, then, they burst into laughter.

However, the longer Clara and the cake were standing in John’s corridor, the more he could smell a certain scent that was becoming harder and harder to ignore. It was a familiar one, very familiar, but he hadn’t associated it with Clara so far.

He sniffed repeatedly. “I know that smell,” he said after a while and at last, Clara lifted the cake a little higher.

She grinned proudly. “Your mother gave me the recipe,” Clara explained, then her pretty face turned into a soft frown. “What was your daughter on about? About Blackpool?”

John gestured towards her to follow him into the kitchen and when she set down the cake, he took it upon himself to cut it into several pieces while the coffee maker bubbled in the background. “I switched shifts with my colleague this weekend, which means I’m on on-call duty today, but I have the next weekend off. Susan has been going on and on about Blackpool and how much she wants to go,” he explained in the meantime.

In response to that, Clara merely shrugged. “Then why don’t we? I have nothing else planned. Would be nice to see the old hometown again.”

Not really sure whether Clara was serious, John raised his eyebrows at her. “Are you sure? It’s a four-hour trip and you’d be stuck with me and a teenager all weekend.”

She chuckled heartily. “I don’t mind at all and I’m sure Susan will love it. I mean, it’s not Disneyland, but there’s a ferris wheel and some other fun rides. I loved that as a kid.”

When the coffee was done, John still hadn’t made up his mind, so Clara suggested to grab the cake and coffee and head into the living room to look up a few affordable hotels close to the piers. As they devoured the cake and sipped their coffee, Clara had his laptop propped up on her lap and before John even knew what was happening, they had booked rooms at a hotel by the beach.

John had had to say no to his daughter many times during the last twelve years and even though he wasn’t exactly an expert at it, saying no to Clara seemed almost impossible. She sat on his sofa next to him, drinking his coffee, holding his laptop, looking completely at home as if she belonged there. John felt his heart sink when he remembered that soon, she would be out of his life forever and that she was the best damn thing that had happened to him since Susan. If there was a way to hold her, to keep her right where she was, John wanted to find it.

“All booked and ready to go!” Clara announced happily and turned her head to look straight at him. Their eyes met and for a moment, John was completely lost for words, not knowing what was going on. Only slowly, he began to wake up from his dreams about Clara. “Are you listening to me?”

He smiled at her. “Yeah, hotel by the beach, driving up there on Friday,” John replied quietly and suddenly, the memory of the kissed popped into his head and he cursed his sister for her evil trick. He wanted to repeat it right now. He wanted to kiss Clara again, to thank her, to tell her how she had brightened up his life. There was no way back from here because John knew that he wanted a relationship, that he had missed it and he wanted it with Clara, a woman who was smart and funny and beautiful and showed up on his doorstep on the day of his birthday with a cake she had made just for him.

Suddenly, a sound tore him out of his thoughts and John realised that he had been staring at Clara - and she had stared at him in return and they both turned their heads towards the computer on her lap. It took him a few moments to understand where the noise had come from until Clara started to laugh.

“Oh, you’ve got a message from-” she broke off and leaned closer to the screen, “Karen Jackson. She wants to be your fake girlfriend. Sorry Karen, I’m afraid that position is taken.”

John, too, bent forward and looked at the Alibi profile on his screen, his mouth distorting into a grimace when he realised why Karen Jackson was unable to find a real relationship. 

“I really need to delete that profile,” he remarked.

Clara chuckled next to him. “You can do better than her,” she told him as she closed the lid of the laptop and turned to smile at John. “Much better.”

John couldn’t help but smile at her in return because right now, she looked so beautiful, so proud. Was she proud to be his alibi girlfriend? Right now, John wanted to believe it. “I already have,” he answered sincerely.

What happened afterwards was nothing but a blur and John didn’t feel like he was in control of anything that he was doing, he didn’t even notice what he was doing until it was too late. He leaned forward and so did Clara, his heart thumping in his chest, his hands trembling a little as their lips met and united in a kiss so gentle and careful that it was hardly a kiss at all.

The sound that interrupted their small moment of intimacy, however, was very much a real sound and it brought John back into the real world even though he couldn’t immediately discern what it was and he distanced himself from Clara. She looked away, unable to meet his gaze and John did the same when he realised that the sound was coming from his beeper. The emergency had come after all and at a moment when he really hadn’t needed it.

“I, uh,” John stammered nervously, “I have to leave. They need me at the hospital.”

He jumped up to his feet and Clara followed his example, but as she rose, she still avoided his gaze. Had he made a mistake in kissing her?

“That’s alright,” she replied, reaching for her bag. “Enjoy the rest of the cake.”

John opened his mouth, determined to say so many things, determined to tell her how he felt, to say how much she meant to him, to apologise for kissing her like that, but all that came over his lips was a thank you before Clara darted out of the door and John was left standing there in the middle of his living room while the hospital beeper went on and on.


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How will John and Clara react to their brief kiss? Let's have a look!
> 
> Thank you guys so much for the sweet comments! I'll be busy again next Saturday, so the next chapter might be up on Sunday again instead.

Very little was said on the drive up to Blackpool and even though everything they exchanged was pleasant and light, Clara could still feel that the tension between them was thick enough to be cut with a knife. After their sweet but strange kiss, Clara hadn’t heard from John all week until she had texted him on Thursday to ask whether their Blackpool trip was still on. Then, she had watched him read it, she had watched the app say “typing” before he had gone offline, then back to “typing” and offline again. Frustrated with the development, Clara had thrown the phone aside and waited until a message had popped up, informing her that, of course, their trip was still going to happen and he would pick her up on Friday afternoon.

Clara wasn’t sure whether she was feeling guilty, regretful or angry because the longer she replayed the kiss in her head, the more convinced she grew that it was something they had both wanted at that moment. Now, she didn’t know what John thought because he never said anything that wasn’t about the weather or an equally trivial topic. When Clara went to bed that evening, she closed her eyes and hoped that the next day would be a better one.

During breakfast, John seemed to thaw a little even though Clara still felt a strange sizzling in the air and she wondered if maybe they would have a moment alone during the day and she vowed to seize it. But no opportunity presented itself at the beach and they didn’t have a quiet moment when they took a tour through the city. As they headed out towards the piers, she went over everything that she was going to say to him in her head, but she found that she kept changing her mind every ten minutes. Should she suggest to forget about the silly kiss? Should she ask him what it had meant to him? Should she confess that maybe, her feelings for him were a little bit more than friendship? Should she say nothing at all and pretend as if nothing had happened? Clara wasn’t sure, but Susan’s excited voice brought her back to reality eventually.

“I want to ride _that_ ,” John’s daughter proclaimed, pointing at one of the faster rides and Clara felt her stomach turn a little at the sight of it.

It didn’t come as a surprise to her when John started to laugh. “You’ll have to go on your own because-” A scream from one of the passengers interrupted his sentence. “Well, for exactly that reason.”

Clara chuckled and, in a moment of bravery, she turned towards Susan. “I could come with you.”

“Really?” Susan asked, her eyes widening in excitement.

“Sure,” Clara confirmed. Her stomach was tingling at the mere thought of it, but right now, it seemed like an excellent way to get the kiss off her mind for just a few minutes. “I’m in the mood for a thrill.”

“And whiplash,” John said, scoffing.

Clara nudged him with her elbow, grinning and finally coaxing a smile from him. He wasn’t nearly as grumpy as he tried to appear even though he probably wouldn’t join them on this particular rollercoaster, but Clara decided that a tamer one would do just fine.

 

Her legs felt wobbly as she exited the ride about ten minutes later and John was waiting for them at the end of the stairs, leaning against a banister with his arms crossed in front of his chest. The smile on his face didn’t make Clara’s knees feel any less weak.

“You sounded like you were having a good time up there,” he remarked when they stepped closer.

Susan hadn’t stopped laughing since they left the rollercoaster and when she came to a halt next to her father, she was still smiling so broadly that it made Clara’s heart light up. One of the reasons she had become a teacher was because she liked to work with them, but she rarely got to see any one of them actually happy while she was torturing them with Shakespeare.

“I took the liberty of filming some of your screams,” John added after a while, waving his phone at them. Then, he winked at Clara. “More material to show our parents.”

In between the rollercoaster ride and John’s smile, Clara had momentarily forgotten about their little scheme and when the realisation returned, so did some of her sadness. Would she ever see John and Susan again after their charade was over?

“That’s… that’s good,” she managed to say and forced herself to smile even though she would rather go on pretending that they weren’t playing games. Although the awkwardness seemed to have left him, Clara wasn’t happy. Not entirely.

“Shall we head over to the central pier and ferris wheel?” John suggested hopefully and when Susan agreed instantly, Clara knew she had no other choice but to agree as well.

Clara had never actually been comfortable with heights, but she was too afraid to speak up when Susan excitedly took one picture after the other as they ascended and John sat next to her, simply enjoying the view while Clara’s stomach tightened into a knot. She really wasn’t comfortable with heights.

Suddenly, Clara felt something on her arm and when she looked, she noticed that John had placed his hand there and he was smiling at her. “Are you alright? You look a bit pale.”

She chuckled in response. “It’s not whiplash if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“Oh, everyone knows that paleness is the first symptom of whiplash,” he joked. “Trust me, I’m a doctor.”

Clara smiled back at him and decided to just tell him the truth because, judging by the look he was giving her, he wouldn’t stop asking until she did. “I’m not really a fan of heights.”

John seemed to consider her reply for a while before he slid a little closer across the seats and looked over the city beneath their feet. They were far above the ground by now and Clara felt her limbs tingle at the thought of rising even further. “Where did you grow up?”

She raised her eyebrows at him. “Are you trying to distract me?”

“Is it working?” he asked back.

Clara shrugged her shoulders. “Maybe a little,” she admitted. A distraction would be quite nice, so she decided to answer his question by pointing in the direction of her childhood home. “You can’t see it from here, but we had a house on a quiet street over there.”

“Was it nice?” John wanted to know.

She nodded truthfully and then raised her arm again as another building came into view. “Over there is my old school. I hated it there.”

“And yet you became a teacher,” John noted, the amusement audible in his voice.

When Clara turned her head to look at him, she felt her heart skip a little beat, but this time, it wasn’t because of the height. She realised that at some point, he had started to hold her hand and he didn’t give off the impression that he planned to let go anytime soon.

“The distraction seems to be working,” he said, smiling.

Clara exhaled carefully, but she couldn’t tell him why it was helping, could she? “Yeah,” she replied, “it does.”


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *quickly drops in to post a chapter* Thank you so much for the sweet comments, guys :)

In the back of her head, Clara knew that the hotel would probably bill her for the carpet, but that didn’t stop her from pacing the floor until she had left a groove in it. By now, it was close to midnight and Clara still couldn’t sleep, her mind flooding with images of the kiss and the gentle touch she and John had exchanged on the ferris wheel whenever she closed her eyes. She tried to focus on the bright side: at least she could convincingly pull off that she was in love with John because she actually was. Some time ago, it had ceased to be a mere ruse for her because of her stupid, stupid heart. Clara had to fall for the one guy she could never possibly have.

Once more, she tried to lie down on the hotel bed in which she had slept so soundly last night after a long week of teaching, but tonight, sleep wouldn’t come. The restlessness was in her every bone, making it impossible for her to even find a comfortable position while every cell in her body wanted her to move.

A knock on her hotel room door tore her out of her internal rant and she raised her head, frowning at the piece of wood separating her from whoever was on the other side of it, and Clara realised that she had no idea who it could be. Carefully, she stepped towards the door and opened it. To her great surprise - and delight - it was John who was waiting for her on the other side.

He gave her an apologetic smile. “I hope I didn’t wake you,” he said, but as his eyes trailed over the body, he must have realised that she was still fully dressed and therefore couldn’t have been asleep. John relaxed visibly.

“Can’t sleep,” Clara admitted.

John sighed in relief and a laugh followed. “Me neither,” he said, still smiling. “Strange bed. Exciting day. Susan nodded off instantly and I thought… well, I didn’t want to wake her and I was wondering if you were still up.”

“I’m up,” she confirmed.

“But if you don’t want to be disturbed, I’ll just go back to my room and-”

“Do you want to go for a walk?” Clara blurted out to put an end to his rambling. Since the kiss, she and John hadn’t had a moment to themselves and it looked as if they were both a little nervous about it. Maybe, they would finally have a chance to talk - but only if he agreed to it.

His face lit up in an instant. “I’d love to.”

 

Their hotel and the beach were only a stone’s throw apart and they didn’t speak much as they headed towards the shore. Only when she felt the sand beneath her feet did the memories come back to her, all those times she had walked along the beach at night with her friends or a boyfriend during her teenage years, but Clara couldn’t remember ever feeling as lost as she was right now. The man she was in love with was right next to her, but as they continued to walk in silence, the seagulls wailing over their heads and the waves rushing to their left, Clara felt as if they were miles apart.

Finally, when they had walked for a while, John started to speak. “Susan loved it,” he said eventually. “This whole trip.”

Clara smiled to herself, feeling a tiny bit proud. “I’m glad. And see, it doesn’t always have to be Disneyland. Blackpool also has its charms.”

“I hope you had a little fun, too.”

She turned her head to look at John and smiled. Under the full moon, his features looked soft and gentle, even more than they usually did. “Yes,” she confirmed. “It was a great idea.”

After that, John fell silent again and Clara felt the words tug at her, but they wouldn’t come out just yet. She needed to know what the kiss had meant to him, she needed to know whether there was even the slightest chance. Yet her courage failed her.

“My parents still want to meet you before the wedding,” she said instead. “They asked whether we’d be available next weekend, but you don’t have to come if you don’t want to. I’ll just tell them you’re a doctor and busy and they’ll let it go.”

John chuckled next to her. “Nonsense,” he replied. “You met my parents, didn’t you? I’ll just stop by for tea and pretend to be your caring boyfriend. It’s not a big deal.”

His words pierced her heart and it felt more painful than she had anticipated. Clara wanted to stop pretending, she wanted it to be real. Somehow, from one moment to the next, the pain made her angry and she couldn’t quite understand why that was. They had agreed on this and it was her fault for not playing by the rules, it was her fault for wanting more, but as the anger slowly rose inside of her, the words finally tumbled out.

“That kiss last week-,” she began, but John cut her sentence short.

“I’m so sorry about that,” he uttered instantly. “I don’t know what came over me, but I know that it was completely out of line and I promise that it will never happen again.”

Under the light of the moon, the sand under their feet and the nearly empty beach around them, Clara felt the boldness of her youth return. She was tired of it, tired of the words, tired of waiting and doubting and hoping, tired of listening to John’s excuses. Whatever the kiss had meant or not meant, when he had kissed her the last time, some part of him had wanted it and that was what counted.

In a surge of bravery, Clara grabbed the lapels of his jacket and pulled him down to meet her. Their lips met in a kiss very much unlike the last time. Tonight, it was fierce and passionate and she opened her mouth to let him in. As her lips parted, John didn’t waste a second and entered, their tongues colliding, scraping, playing their wonderful, little game as he folded his arms around her back to pull her closer. Clara’s heart was thumping in her chest, filling her with happiness as she realised that maybe, there was hope for them after all no matter what they had agreed upon in the beginning.

When they finally ran out of air, Clara pulled away for just a moment, giggling gleefully to herself and she could hear John chuckle into her ear.

“What I was trying to say,” she noted breathlessly, “that kiss was very nice.”

“This is also nice,” he remarked, the amusement audible in his voice.

They only had a moment to catch their breath before Clara felt his lips on hers once more, kissing her with a fierceness she hadn’t expected of him and suddenly, Clara felt a little like a teenager again, stealing a few secret kisses on the beach that no one would ever know about. Tonight held the same kind of excitement in the air, the same sizzling of a brand new romance and right now, as they held each other under the cloak of night, Clara didn’t even want to think about what it might bring. She just wanted to enjoy.

 

When they finally walked back to the hotel, their feet freezing despite the summer temperatures, Clara and John held hands, but they never exchanged a word and they didn’t need to for now. This gesture, their kiss was everything Clara needed to know that there was still hope and it was enough for the butterflies to run haywire in her stomach. Back at the hotel, John didn’t wish her goodnight, but before she entered her room, she glanced back once more and noticed that John was smiling at her, a look that conveyed his happiness and everything else she was feeling. Tonight, Clara went to sleep with the feeling that everything was going to be just fine.


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me, in my dreams: I'll be home all July, I'll have so much time on my hands.  
> Me, in reality: *rushes from appointment to appointment and forgets to post chapters*
> 
> Thank you so, so, so much for the sweet comments you left on the last chapter :) John and Clara are definitely getting closer, but why are there so many chapters left? Let's find out! Again, sorry for not posting when I promised I would, but I had a job interview yesterday and now I'm just checking in very briefly before getting my wisdom teeth extracted, so bear with me here :D

Clara hated having her hopes crushed just like everyone else on this planet. After their first kiss, she thought she might have been mistaken, that John might not be interested in her at all, that she had merely imagined it. After their second - and third - however, Clara had known that there was something between them, something that was more than friendship. It had been clear to her that they wouldn’t talk about it with his daughter present, but she had expected a message or a phone call, maybe even a letter. What she hadn’t expected was the silence that followed their kiss once again.

Monday passed with Clara constantly checking her phone at work, only to be disappointed by the distinct lack of messages from John. Tuesday passed in the same fashion. On Wednesday, Clara started to think that maybe she had imagined it all, that she had somehow kissed John without his consent, that maybe she had misread his reaction, but she quickly scolded herself for her doubt. His reaction had been crystal clear and she deserved an honest answer. Clara deserved to know what exactly was going between them. As she walked to school that morning, she determined that two scenarios were likely. The first scenario was one Clara didn’t really believe in, but she couldn’t rule it out unless she talked to John. Maybe, he was using her. He was a man, after all, and he was enjoying the attention she gave him, not really intending to go any further than that because even though the attraction was there, John had no feelings for her. However, after having known him for a while, Clara didn’t really think it was likely, not when he was usually the perfect gentleman. The second scenario was a little more likely and that involved him being too cowardly to make a move. Maybe, he was torn because - just like Clara - he hadn’t wanted a relationship, but that wasn’t a reason to ignore her. Clara would get to the bottom of it.

As she made her way through the children running around the schoolyard and playing their ball games, Clara greeted her colleagues with a nod and dodged the football the students were kicking around, but in her head, she was somewhere else entirely. In her head, she made a plan to call John as soon as her work day was over. He owed her a conversation and she would fight to have it.

“Hey!” Clara called out to some of her students. Two boys had managed to knock over a couple of pawns on the oversized chess board. “I said you could play football! I didn’t say you could play it on the chessboard! Move it!”

The boys hurried off, taking their ball with them, but they didn’t actually clean up the mess they had made, so Clara sighed and approached the board to tidy up after them, vowing to bring up the subject when they came to her English class later on.

“Clara!”

Someone called her name with a hint of panic in their voice and as she recognised Adrian, Clara spun around, but it was much too late. It all happened too quickly for her to comprehend and the only thing she saw was a flash before the world went black.

 

Everything was cold and hard and there was a ringing in her ears, accompanied by a strange kind of pain that seemed to grow stronger the more she focused on it. In fact, before she had even opened her eyes, Clara was sure that her head would burst as soon as she did.

“She’s coming to,” someone else and it sounded like Adrian, but his voice seemed so far away that she didn’t quite believe he was the one holding her hand. “Clara?”

Finally, she managed to blink and looked straight into Adrian’s face, but she also spotted a few of her other colleagues - and some of the students - bending over her. Their voices, however, seemed to be miles away and Clara could hardly hear them over the ringing.

“What happened?” she croaked.

Adrian smiled at her. “You got hit by a ball. Pretty hard, I might say. You passed out.”

Clara attempted to move, but she soon realised that it only made the pain worse and that Adrian was holding her down. She just wanted to get off the cold floor and she had no recollection of being hit, so it couldn’t be too bad.

“Someone should take her to the hospital,” another person said and when Clara turned her head, she recognised the headmaster, Mr Armitage. He looked worried for some reason.

“I’ll do it,” Adrian volunteered instantly.

Eventually, Clara found her voice again, as well as the strength to sit up. “There’s no need. I’ll be fine in a few minutes. Just give me a cup of tea and somewhere to sit down.”

“Out of the question,” Adrian protested instantly. “You passed out. You probably have a concussion. I’m going to take you to a doctor.”

A doctor. Suddenly, the irony of what had happened to her started to dawn on Clara. A concussion. Hit by a football. This was exactly the story she and John had told their parents and it seemed that this incident was one of fate’s strange ways to give her a sign, but it was enough to make Clara stop her protests.

“Alright,” she agreed.

Adrian helped her stand up and Clara had to admin that her colleagues were probably right. She was dizzy and her ears were ringing more badly now that the blood flowed from her head back to the rest of her body and maybe, she really had a concussion.

“I’m so sorry, Miss,” one of her students apologised, looking down at his own shoes. “I didn’t mean to hit you.”

“Accidents happen,” Clara told him in passing, attempting to smile but not quite managing it. “Go back to your class.”

 

Her colleague led her to his car that he had parked around the corner and when Adrian started to drive, Clara thought her stomach was going to turn over. He and her other colleagues were definitely right to demand that she should have a check-up, especially because the headache only seemed to grow worse by the minute and she still couldn’t remember how exactly she had been hit. It felt as if her head was hanging somewhere in the clouds, foggy with pain and dizziness.

“Damn,” Adrian cursed on the driver’s seat.

Clara turned her head, realising too late that the movement didn’t help her pain. “What is it?”

He uttered a deep and heavy sigh. “There’s a traffic jam,” he announced and Clara could feel her heart sink as he pondered his next move. Somehow, she had a vague idea where this was going. “Maybe we should go to a different hospital. Might be quicker.”

Clara leaned back in her seat and yielded to her destiny. This was a self-fulfilling prophecy she had only herself to blame for.


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for the lovely comments! You should know by now that when it comes to their feelings, the last thing the Doctor and Clara will do is talk :D

_Dear Clara,_  
_I had a wonderful time last weekend and I was wondering if maybe, we could repeat it._

John deleted the message with a groan and sank deeper into his seat, realising how tacky it sounded. For days, he had been trying to craft the perfect message, failing a little more with each attempt. All he wanted to do was to tell her what he was really feeling, but John just didn’t know how to.

_Hello Clara,_  
_thank you for the wonderful weekend. Susan is still talking about the rollercoaster and I can’t stop thinking about the time we spent together at the beach._

Once again, John deleted everything he had written and cast his phone aside, making it slide across the table. Why was he so bad at it? Why couldn’t he just call and tell her that he couldn’t stop thinking about their kiss, that he was desperate to see her again and pick up where they had left off. Growling to himself, he reached for the phone again and decided to try again even though during the last two and half days, he had deleted countless drafts without ever sending them. At some point, he was bound to find the right words.

_Hey Clara,_  
_I hope you enjoyed the weekend as much as I did. What do you think about having dinner on Saturday? Susan is having a sleepover and I could cook us something-_

When the door burst open, John almost dropped his phone and he looked up to see Martha’s head pop up between the door and door frame. She wore an apologetic look on her face, one that let John know his lunch break was about to be cut short when he hadn’t even touched his sandwich yet.

“I’m sorry,” Martha began, smiling awkwardly at him, “but you’re needed in the casualty department. A couple of people just came in.”

John smiled at her in return and kissed his quiet lunchtime goodbye. “I’ll be there in a sec.”

 

As he made his way towards the consulting office, John glanced at the sheet of paper someone had filled out in nothing but scribbles and he had to squint to make out what the shaky handwriting was supposed to mean. It took him a while, but by the time he reached the office, John had figured out that he was dealing with someone who had suffered a concussion and he discarded the file on the desk. He looked up to greet his patient when suddenly, the words got stuck in his throat and his feet came to an abrupt halt.

“Clara,” John blurted out, more than a little surprised to see her here. She was the last person he would have expected even though the name would have been visible on her file had he bothered to read that far. Now, he was cursing himself because he hadn’t and her appearance had rendered him a speechless idiot.

Clara looked at him and the surprise was visible on her face as well, but she tried to smile, not quite managing to move lips. It was obvious that she was in pain and John felt the knot in his stomach tighten uncomfortably. Something had happened and Clara was hurt and it was his job to do something about that, so he pulled up a chair and sat down next to her.

“The file said you may have a concussion,” he began. “How did that happen?”

Finally, a sound came out of her mouth and it sounded almost like chuckling. “Don’t laugh, but I was hit by a football.”

“From a student?” John asked incredulously. He remembered that story, but the last time he had told it, it was nothing but a sweet, little lie, a funny story for their parents.

Clara nodded in response and despite her request not to, John found it hard to stifle the little laugh that came over his lips.

“I said don’t laugh,” Clara complained listlessly. “I’m fully aware of the irony.”

However, she finally cracked a little smile as their eyes met and John felt a hint of relief. The symptoms she had described on paper sounded quite severe, but if she was already smiling again, maybe the concussion wasn’t so bad after all. As he looked at the smile, John felt his heart skip a beat. He wanted to tell her, he wanted to let her know that he couldn’t stop thinking about her, but there was a time and a place and sadly, this wasn’t it.

“How are you feeling?” John asked instead, realising that the concern still showed in his voice.

Clara inhaled deeply and he watched her body relax. “A little better than this morning, I think? I passed out when the ball hit me and I woke up nauseous and with a headache. It’s subsiding a little. The ringing in my ears has stopped.”

“That’s good,” John told her in reply, the feeling of relief growing stronger. “That all sounds very good, but we still have to run some tests just to be sure. I’m going to call a nurse to prep you for a CT scan.”

He picked up the phone and told the nurse on the other end to pick up his patient and accompany her to the CT scan, all the while praying that Clara was going to be alright. Even if her symptoms were subsiding, he just had to be sure and he would run every test known to men so as not to miss anything. When he hung up and turned towards her again, he noticed her smile.

“Don’t worry,” John tried to reassure her.

Clara chuckled a little. “I’m not worried,” she replied and her smile seemed to wind itself around his heart, squeezing it just a little tighter. “I’m in good hands.”

John opened his mouth, but he wasn’t quite sure what to do with the compliment, he wasn’t quite sure what to say except that he loved her and that she was on his mind at all times, but he was determined to find a better moment to let her know.

“How have you been?” Clara wanted to know.

The question took him by surprise, to say the least. He wasn’t the one at the hospital with a concussion. “Me?”

She nodded carefully, letting John think that maybe, she was still experiencing some of the headache and movement made it worse. “I haven’t heard from you since Sunday.”

John had been mistaken. This was it. This was the moment. He was going to tell her what she meant to him.

“Actually, I was just about to-”

The door burst open and the nurse stuck her head in through the crack, informing John and Clara that the CT was ready and that the tests could continue and he watched his moment come and go, cursing the horrible timing and the circumstances.

 

While Clara was taken away, John saw another patient with a broken wrist and he only half listened to the story of how he had broken his bone while his mind was with Clara and he counted the minutes until he had finally dealt with the reckless motocross driver and he could go back to the woman he loved.

She was waiting in the next room, her feet dangling off the chair as she waited for him and a smile spread across her face when she saw him. By now, most of the colour had returned to her face and a glance at the CT scan told John that she was going to be just fine. His heart felt a hundred pounds lighter.

“So?” Clara asked, leaning forward to catch a glimpse of the scan while John examined it.

John raised his head, giving her a reassuring look. “The scan looks good. According to your symptoms, it is a concussion, but since they are already subsiding, you’ll be fine after a few days of rest. You might be a bit nauseous and there will be a lingering headache, but it should gradually improve. If it doesn’t, or if it gets worse again, you’ll have to see a doctor immediately.”

Clara nodded.

“No physical exertion for at least a week and for the next few days, try to take it easy. Don’t do anything that requires a lot of concentration.”

She didn’t respond, but from the way Clara looked at him, John could tell that she was still expecting something from him, expecting him to say something, but the words just wouldn’t come over his lips. John just stood there, smiling at Clara and she smiled back until the nurse interrupted them again and cursed himself. He was an excellent doctor, but when it came to women, he was utterly useless.


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for the sweet, sweet comments!!! I swear, I'm not forgetting to post on purpose, but my dog decided to give me a little scare last Wednesday and I had to take her to the vet.

As Clara climbed the steps to her apartment, she felt the headache and dizziness fade and give way to exhaustion. She was exhausted and hungry and craved nothing more than putting her feet up and leaning back with something nice to eat. Except that something nice to eat would have to be cooked first and the thought of that put a damper on Clara’s relaxing thought.

“I’m glad you’ll be okay,” Adrian’s voice said next to her and with a pang of guilt, Clara realised that she had completely forgotten about his presence up until now.

Adrian had driven her to the hospital, waited until the doctors had finished, driven her back home and now, he was accompanying her all the way up to her apartment just to make sure that she was alright - and yet her thoughts went back and forth between John and settling on her sofa in the most comfortable position possible.

“Thank you for taking me home,” Clara said sincerely.

“Not a problem,” her colleague replied. “I’m sure the students were grateful for a free period.”

She chuckled at the image of that. “Yeah, I think they were,” Clara agreed.

They came to a halt in front of her doorstep and Clara realised how much she would have loved for John to be here right now. Not because he was a doctor and he could provide further medical care but because of him. Right now, she wanted nothing more than to lie down next to him and relax while his deep, raspy voice told her a story. It was pathetic really, especially given the earlier conversation between the two of them during which he hadn’t mentioned their kiss with a single word.

“Do you need anything else?” Adrian asked as he followed her through the door without an invitation. “Food? Something to drink? An extra pillow?”

Clara lifted her head and looked at Adrian’s hopeful face, remembering how he had asked her out on a date not too long ago. She didn’t want to rekindle his hopes, but the prospect of being served something to eat sounded almost too good to turn down, so she granted him an apologetic smile.

“Actually, could you warm up some instant soup for me?” Clara asked. “If it’s not too inconvenient, of course.”

Adrian smiled at her in reply. “It’s not inconvenient at all. You rest, I’ll make you some soup.”

With only a slightly guilty conscience, Clara trotted off towards her sofa while Adrian busied himself in the kitchen and as she curled herself up in her blanket, Clara decided that with her concussion, she deserved some form of special treatment and since John wasn’t available to her, the next best thing would have to do.

* * *

John’s knees felt a little weak and he tried to blame it on the endless staircase when, in truth, he knew that it was because of Clara. Clutching a bouquet of flowers in his hand, he was making his way to her flat to tell her how he felt and nothing was going to stop him this time. No cowardice, no eager colleague, nothing. Today, John would finally tell Clara that he was in love with her and wanted to be more than just friends and fake partners. He had already found the words and he kept rearranging them in his head to find the perfect sentence, the perfect way to confess his feelings, but even if he didn’t find it, John would tell her. Hell, if all else failed, he would paint it or burst into song, but he couldn’t possibly hold it back any longer.

When he had almost reached Clara’s floor, John suddenly heard hurried steps coming to meet him and he only just managed to evade the other person before they crashed into each other.

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” the other man mumbled immediately as he came to an abrupt halt. “I didn’t see you there.”

John, not seeing the need for an apology as they had averted a collision, merely nodded in response. Then, he watched the man’s eyes wander towards the bouquet of flowers.

“You’re on your way to see Clara? You’ve heard of the accident?” he asked.

For a moment, John wasn’t entirely sure what to say. This man had somehow learned of Clara’s injury hours after it had happened and he was leaving Clara’s flat. A bad feeling started to creep up on John, a horrible, dirty feeling and the longer he let it sink in, the more he realised that he was too late. There was only one reason this man could have known and the reason was that he was close to Clara. John couldn’t really blame her, after all, their relationship was a fake one and this man seemed to be nice and caring and, above all, Clara’s own age. She had found a new boyfriend.

“Well, I should be on my way,” the man concluded with a smile when John failed to answer. “Bye.”

Even after the man had left, John stood there for a moment longer, letting the news sink in before he finally climbed the last flight of stairs to Clara’s apartment, his feet as heavy as his heart and he realised that he had no one to blame but himself. Hadn’t he known for a while that his feelings for Clara went beyond friendship? Hadn’t he had countless chances to tell her about them? And yet, John had chosen the coward’s way and it had come back to bite him. Now, he stood in front of her door with a bouquet of flowers and the words he had meant to say to her had vanished completely.

Clara opened the door to him and he watched her smile as she recognised him and saw the flowers. “Oh, I didn’t expect you today. I thought you’d still be at work.”

John returned her smile. “My shift ended,” he explained. “I thought I’d come to see how you’re doing.”

She waved him inside and John followed her slowly, looking around with a wary eye for a trace of her new boyfriend. He couldn’t find any, but that was probably because it was still fresh. He had had a chance and he had blown it.

As John entered her living room, he noticed the blanket on the sofa and the soup bowl and teacup on the coffee table. “Looks like you’ve got everything you need. Where do you keep the vases?” he wanted to know, holding up the flowers.

While Clara sat back down, John retrieved a vase from the cupboard and filled it with water before he went back into the lounge and placed the flowers neatly on her table, but he doubted that the gesture would help him now.

“Thank you,” Clara said sincerely, still smiling. “They’re beautiful. And thanks for checking on me.”

John raised his eyebrows at her. “And how are you feeling?”

“Better,” she confirmed to his relief. “Still got a headache, but I suppose that’s normal.”

“It is,” John replied. He wanted to ask about the young man he had encountered on the stairs, he wanted Clara to admit that she was seeing someone, but he didn’t know how to get the question out. Right now, as he glanced at the soup and tea and a more than content looking Clara, he felt surplus to requirements. “Well, I should probably get going. You need rest and-”

“Actually,” Clara cut him off, “could you stay for a while?”

Her request took him by surprise. John hadn’t expected it, not after running into her boyfriend, but he had to admit that it was what he wanted.

“Unless you’ve got somewhere you need to be, of course,” she added, followed by a nervous laugh.

When John didn’t respond immediately, Clara made some space on the sofa and patted the empty spot next to her, prompting a smile from John.

“Well, I suppose I could keep you company for a while,” he reasoned and didn’t hesitate another second before he sat down next to Clara.

She adjusted the blanket around her and shuffled a little, but eventually, she found a cosy spot - leaning her head on his shoulder while John felt his heart skip a beat. This was exactly what he had hoped for, but his heart still felt heavy with the recent revelations.

“Can you tell me a story?” Clara asked and when she sighed, John recognised the exhaustion in her voice. She had to be tired after everything that had happened today, but still, John decided to indulge her.

“How about the funniest stories from the casualty department?” he suggested.

Clara chuckled as she nestled her head against his shoulder. Slowly, John started to relax. “That sounds perfect.”


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for the sweet comments! I know it's frustrating, but we're so clooooose

John was going to protest when Missy refilled his glass, but he soon thought better of it and allowed her to continue. Ever since Blackpool, things had been going steadily downhill with his stupid cowardice and Clara’s new boyfriend - or whoever he was - so John decided that it was five pm somewhere. However, as he reached for the Scotch, he became aware of his sister’s inquisitive gaze.

“You don’t normally drink in the afternoon,” Missy said warily, raising an eyebrow at him. “What’s wrong?”

For a moment, John actually considered telling her, but the prospect of pouring his heart out to Missy wasn’t a very appealing one. “Nothing,” he replied instead. “Just had a tough week at the hospital.”

“Lucy and I are back together.”

John raised his head, frowning at his sister after her most recent statement which took him by surprise. It wasn’t the statement itself because he had always known that Missy’s and Lucy’s marriage wasn’t as over as they always claimed, but he was surprised that she was confessing it now and in such a nonchalant manner after months of denial. Yet before he could ask her about it, Missy shrugged.

“I told you my secret, now it’s your turn.”

There was no way he could have seen that coming and he really shouldn’t tell his sister about any of it, but the words tumbled out of his mouth before he could stop them.

“I’m in love with Clara,” he confessed.

Missy chuckled in response. “Tell me something I don’t know,” she said, the amusement audible in her voice. “I’ve seen you two kiss, remember? You were like nervous teenagers, of course you have feelings for each other. But are you together yet?”

The sound that escaped John’s throat was somewhere between a sigh and a growl. The last person he wanted to accept relationship advice from was Missy and yet, a part of him just wanted to get it out in the open. John had hoped to tell Clara about his feelings, but ever since he had run into the other man, he was no longer sure it was such a good idea. After all, if she had a boyfriend and felt nothing for him, they would still have to attend some family events together and that would be awkward after a failed confession of love. Instead of replying, he sipped his scotch and waited for Missy to change the subject. However, he had no such luck.

“Well?” his sister demanded.

“Well, I’m in love and we kissed, yes, but I think she has a boyfriend.”

“You think or you know?”

John groaned in response. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “But I can’t ask her, can I? It’s none of my business. And anyway, why would she take me when she can have a good-looking guy her own age? The only relationship we have is fake.”

When he looked up at his sister, Missy wore a pitying expression on her face. “Oh John,” she sighed. “You really need to grow up at some point.”

* * *

While her father and stepmother were hungrily eating their cake in the living room, Clara offered to fetch more coffee just to have an excuse to leave the room. John had promised to be here and slowly but surely, a bad feeling started to creep up inside her stomach and she started to think that he wasn’t going to make it. So far, her family hadn’t mentioned it with a single word, but it was only a matter of time until they started asking questions and Clara wanted to be prepared. As soon as she was on her own, she pulled her phone from her pocket to check her messages, but apart from one of Amy’s silly selfies, there were none. John hadn’t even read her latest message.

With a heavy sigh, she put the phone back in her pocket just when her stepmother’s impatient voice called out for her.

“Coming!” Clara responded, grabbed the decanter and headed back into the living room.

Just as she had expected, it didn’t take her stepmother very long to open up the subject of her absent boyfriend. Where on earth was John? He was usually reliable.

“So, you promised us a boyfriend,” Linda remarked. “He’s not imaginary, is he?”

Clara cleared her throat, racking her brain for a good way to begin the conversation even though she didn’t have a clue why John wasn’t here when he had explicitly promised he would. “I, uh, I’m afraid I can’t reach him right now,” she admitted. “Maybe he was called to work.”

“What does he do again?” her father wanted to know.

Clara looked up, smiling at her father, but at the same time, she kept a close eye on Linda’s reaction. “He’s a doctor.”

Just as she had expected, her stepmother looked impressed. However, she didn’t seem impressed enough to look past the missed coffee date.

“Doctor or not, it certainly doesn’t show him in a good light if he stands us up on the very first meeting,” she argued and it was obvious from the tone in her voice that coffee and cake weren’t enough to make up for her wasted time.

“Linda, he was probably called to an emergency,” her father reminded her. “I think saving a life is a little more important than meeting the in-laws. Besides, we’ll meet him next Saturday.”

When Clara saw that Linda was about to open her mouth, she rose from her seat and decided to pause the argument for a while. “I’m going to try calling him again,” Clara announced and vanished into the kitchen once again.

By now, she felt a little angry, too. It just wasn’t like John to stand her up and not come when he had agreed to. An emergency at the hospital was something she could forgive, but he owned a rather modern mobile phone and Clara was certain that he knew how to use it, no matter how busy he was. He could have found a minute to reply to her message and let her know that he wouldn’t be able to make it.

The anger only grew as the dial tone went on and on and on without anyone picking up and Clara was ready to quit trying when finally, she heard the familiar clicking sound, followed by John’s voice.“Clara?” he asked and he sounded a little surprised. In fact, there was something odd about his voice, but Clara didn’t have time to focus on that now, not when she was so angry at him. John obviously hadn’t been called to an emergency.

“Where the hell are you?” she demanded to know, keeping her voice low so that her father and Linda couldn’t hear it. “My parents are here and they’re already asking about you!”

The silence that followed seemed almost endless and it didn’t help Clara’s anger in the slightest.

“John?”

“I, uh, that was today?” he asked, the confusion audible in his voice. “I’m so sorry. I completely forgot.”

“Yes, that was today. Still is, actually,” Clara hissed. “So where the hell are you?”

She heard him inhale sharply and blow the air out between his teeth. “Sorry, I forgot. I was with Missy. We talked.”

By now, Clara could finally discern what it was about John’s voice that sounded so odd. “Have you been drinking?!” she wanted to know.

“I, uh,” he paused. “Yeah, sorry. I’m really, really sorry. If you like, I can be on my way in ten minutes.”

For a brief moment, Clara considered it, but as she pictured a drunk John showing up to meet her parents, she quickly thought better of it. That was not the kind of impression she wanted him to leave on Linda.

“No,” she replied eventually, feeling somewhere between angry and disappointed. She had wanted to show him off to her parents, she had wanted him here because his presence would have made the awkward afternoon a little better, but Clara could see that it just wasn’t meant to be. “I’ll tell them you were called to an emergency. Just don’t forget the wedding next week.”

“I won’t, I promise,” he said sincerely. “And again, I’m so s-”

Clara hung up on him before he could finish his apology even though she felt a little bad about it. John had done a lot more for her than she had asked of him and yet, he had failed to do the one thing she had asked for and now, she had to face her stepmother alone. The anger would take a while to settle.


	28. Chapter 28

“ _This_ is your new boyfriend?”

Her stepmother’s reaction was everything Clara had ever dreamed of. As soon as she had introduced John, Linda’s eyes started to widen in horror when she realised that it wasn’t a joke.

In a friendly manner, John extended his hand. “Hello, I’m John Smith and it’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” he said, shaking Linda’s floppy hand. She was still too much in shock to say anything. “I’m very sorry I couldn’t make it last weekend, but I’m afraid I was called to the hospital.”

The memory of the failed date still stung a little and Clara quickly averted her eyes so as not to show her emotions too openly. Something was off even though she couldn’t quite tell what it was. John was here now, on his best behaviour and he was dressed in an impeccable suit, but something about him still felt strange, it felt different and Clara wished that she knew what it was. He was here, but he still felt miles away as if there was an invisible wall between them.

“Clara mentioned you are a doctor?” her father asked. He was civil and seemed to accept John while her stepmother still looked at him as if she wanted to murder John for robbing her of the opportunity to set Clara up with one of her friends’ sons.

John nodded in response. “I am, that’s how Clara and I met,” he explained and turned his head, smiling at her. Still, there was something odd about his smile, something that made it look a little less sincere.

What had happened between them? Clara racked her brain for an explanation and eventually, she found it. It was the kiss they had shared in Blackpool, that’s when everything had started to go wrong. Had she misjudged his intentions? His feelings? Had she been wrong to assume that he had wanted it, too? It was the only reason that made sense because that was when John had started to pull away from her and suddenly, Clara wished she was somewhere else entirely. All she wanted right now was to hide under a blanket and not talk to anyone while she wallowed in the memories of the previous weeks.

“How old are you, again?” Linda asked, tearing Clara out of her thoughts and her head shot around to glare at her stepmother.

“Linda, please,” her father reminded her, “that is a rather rude question.”

“It really is,” Clara threw in and took John’s arm, pulling him away from her father and stepmother. There were other people they had to say hello to after all, so she turned to look at John. “Let me introduce you to my grandmother.”

 

The introduction to her grandmother went down a little less awkward, mainly because she was aware of the nature of their relationship. They chatted for a while, they laughed a little and when Clara glanced at her watch, she noticed that it would soon be time for the ceremony. Since both her father and Linda had been married before, they had decided not to make a big deal out of the wedding. Still, Clara couldn’t help but think that there was a certain charm to the setting even though she wasn’t actually fond of the idea of her father marrying her hated stepmother.

They had booked a small seaside hotel and the patio where the ceremony took place overlooked the ocean in the distance. As Clara listened to the words of the registrar, she became painfully aware of his words - and of John sitting next to her. While he spoke of finding love a second time, of bringing hope and the memory of loss into a new relationship along with the determination to make it better, to use the second chance, Clara thought about how she had found love in the most unexpected manner and how it would forever be unrequited. John wasn’t in love with her, that much was obvious, and the recent realisation of that pained her as her father and Linda kissed in front of the crowd. Still, Clara raised her hands and applauded, hoping that one day, she would be able to give her heart to someone who deserved it.

 

The celebration went on, but somehow, Clara had lost the little interest she had had in mingling and participating in their _fun_ party games. As she stepped out onto the patio in the evening, the rice people had thrown hours ago still crunched under her heels and she tried her best not to contemplate her situation any further, but she knew she was failing terribly. The truth was that she had no one to blame but herself. She had contacted John, she had chosen him and she had fallen in love despite her better judgement. Her breaking heart was just the consequence of her own stupid actions.

“Do you want to dance?”

Clara spun around and spotted John standing behind her. She hadn’t even heard him over the noise inside her own head and now he stood there, only an arm’s length away from her touch, looking too handsome in his suit and ruffled silver hair.

She granted him a smile. “Maybe later,” Clara said.

Without saying a word, John strode up to her and came to a halt near the bannister, leaning against it to look out over the ocean. After blowing the air out between his teeth, he spoke again. “Was your stepmother’s reaction everything you had hoped it would be?” he wanted to know.

Finally, Clara chuckled for real. “She was quite well behaved, but I can imagine what she’s going to say once the wedding is over. That’s enough for me, I suppose.”

John was right next to her and yet, Clara had the impression that if she reached out to touch him, an invisible barrier would block her attempt. She really had ruined it all when she had kissed him again.

“Is Susie staying on her own this weekend?” Clara asked just to make conversation.

He shook his head. “No, she’s staying with Missy,” John explained and suddenly, he began to laugh. “You know, my sister is back with her ex-wife. She’s been denying it for months, but she finally came out with it.”

“Good for her,” she replied, not knowing what else to say.

“We’ll have to share a hotel room tonight, won’t we?” John asked. He turned his head, looking straight at her and Clara wished she knew what he was thinking about. His expression was utterly unreadable. At first, there was a flicker of amusement, of hope, but maybe she had only imagined it because his expression soon turned cool.

“Yeah,” she replied simply. “I mean, it would have been strange for us not to share one. We’re supposed to be a couple, after all.”

Slowly, he nodded. “If, um, if that’s a problem for you, I can sleep on the floor.”

Clara opened her mouth to tell him how silly his suggestion was, but she never got a word out when the terrace door opened and her father stuck his head through the crack. “Buffet is ready,” he announced with a gleeful smile. Somehow, Clara thought, marriage suited him even if it was a marriage to Linda. “Are you coming?”

John offered her his arm in an instant. “Wouldn’t want you to miss dinner,” he said and smiled at her when Clara took his arm. Right now, she wanted this night to be over more than anything else.


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for your wonderful comments :) Now that we're closing in on the end, will John and Clara finally talk or will they miss their opportunity once again?

John walked into the hotel room, following a few steps behind Clara to give her the space she seemed to need tonight. It was probably his own fault because John could feel himself pulling back in an attempt to protect his heart. Even though Missy had told him to ask Clara about her boyfriend, even though he wasn’t entirely sure, John couldn’t bring himself to open up the subject. Clara was probably still mad at him for standing her up, so the last thing John wanted was to infuriate her further. It would all be over soon. In two weeks, after his parent’s birthday event, John would never see Clara again. She would go back to her own life, to her maybe-boyfriend and he would go back to being lonely. There was no point in giving himself false hope and making the situation even worse.

When he closed the door behind him, Clara suddenly spun around on her heels and looked straight at him, her eyes glaring, and John felt the urge to run. When she opened her mouth, John was actually scared of what she was going to say.

“We need to talk,” Clara announced. Was her voice trembling a little? Was she nervous, too?

“Uh,” John spluttered in response, “alright. What do you want to talk about?”

“About you,” she said, gesturing towards him. “And me. About how you stood me up last week, about how you’re here but… not. You obviously have some kind of problem and if it’s about the kiss, you can just say so because I can promise you, it won’t happen again.”

For a moment, John was too baffled to speak. Not because she had picked up on his mood, but because of the conclusions she had drawn. Then again, Clara wasn’t all that wrong, the kiss had as much to do with his behaviour as the discovery of her boyfriend. Everything was connected.

“It’s not about the kiss,” John argued. “Well, it is, but it’s not. I, uh, I enjoyed that kiss. It’s just… you-”

John broke off and gestured helplessly towards Clara. “We’re only in a fake relationship and when I visited you after you came to the hospital, I… I met your real boyfriend.”

Clara’s eyes widened instantly. “My what?”

“Your, um, the man I met on the stairs. Young, bowtie-wearing, very polite.”

The sound that came from Clara’s lips as she rolled her eyes sounded like a groan. “You met my colleague,” she told him with a sigh. “Adrian. He drove me to the hospital and back home. He had just left when you stopped by.”

John needed a moment to process what she had told him, but it slowly began to dawn on him. If Adrian wasn’t her boyfriend, Clara probably didn’t have one. If she didn’t have a boyfriend, John didn’t have to feel bad about kissing her, he didn’t need to pull back, he still had a chance. Suddenly, his heart felt a lot lighter.

“If I had a real boyfriend, do you really think I would have gone looking for a fake one?” Clara wanted to know, raising her eyebrows at him while she crossed her arms in front of her chest.

John had been so silly, so stupid and right now, he couldn’t help but smile at her. For the first time tonight, he allowed himself to look at her, _properly_ look at her. Clara was so beautiful in her evening dress, so elegant, even that angry stare she was giving him was something he loved to the moon and back.

“Why are you grinning like an idiot?” Clara asked him, but now, even she sounded a little amused. “Because I need to tell you that you _are_ an idiot. You never said a word to me after Blackpool, letting me think the kiss was a mistake. You stood me up when you were supposed to meet my parents and you’re an idiot in general, so you can stop grinning.”

“I really enjoyed that kiss,” John admitted once again, but he was still unable to stop smiling. “And I didn’t know how to tell you that. I didn’t know what you thought about it. And then I ran into Adrian and, well, you know the rest.”

A strange silence fell over the hotel room in which neither of them spoke. John looked at Clara, determined to hold her gaze while she shuffled her feet and even though he kept racking his brain for something intelligent to say, nothing came to mind. He should probably tell her that he was in love, that he wanted nothing more than to have an actual relationship with her. John wanted Clara to know that she was everything he could possibly want in a woman, that she fit into his - and Susan’s - life like the last piece of a puzzle, but instead of saying anything, he decided to let his actions do the talking.

He and Clara stepped forward at the same time, their lips meeting instantly for a kiss that seemed long overdue and John felt his heart flutter in his chest while he closed his arms around her. Was that it? Was that their happy ending?

To John, it felt more like a beginning when Clara’s hands wandered over his chest, sliding the jacket off his shoulders with the kind of ease that let him with little doubt as to her intentions. It was the first step into a whole new territory, opening the door to a new possibility that John hadn’t even wanted to consider just in case it never came true. It wasn’t until Clara set out to fumble with the buttons of his shirt that John allowed himself to act. He tightened the embrace, pulling Clara closer until their bodies were touching, pulling her deeper into the kiss until he ran out of breath.

When their lips parted, he could hear Clara chuckle. She looked up, her eyes dark and glinting mischievously. With their bodies pressed against each other, there was no way for her to miss the signs of his arousal.

“About what you said earlier,” she said, her voice deep and a little bit hoarse as she smiled at him. “I don’t think I’m going to let you sleep on the floor.”

John scoffed in amusement. “I’m glad to hear that.”

“I also think I’m going to need some help getting undressed,” Clara said almost too casually for what she had asked him to do.

From one moment to the next, John lost his balance as Clara gave him a gentle push, but he fell softly, his back pressing into the mattress of the hotel bed while Clara straddled his lap. Somehow, John didn’t care anymore whether this was a happy ending or a happy beginning, all that mattered was the here and now and how much John didn’t want this moment to end. Everything about Clara was perfect: the way she kissed him, the sensation of her warm skin once he had discarded her dress, the shape of her body that aligned with his own, the sound she made when he entered her. John sank back into the sheets, revelling in the sensation he hadn’t even known he had missed. Between the brief kisses, between the thrusts and the shortness of breath, he and Clara became one; the outside world ceased to exist. Just before his climax started to overpower him, John thought that if there was a way to stop time, he could freeze this perfect moment of happiness forever.

* * *

Soft voices slowly tore John out of his dream and it took him a while to realise where he was, but the unfamiliar bed and the lack of pyjamas quickly brought last night’s memories back to the surface. John reached out, expecting to find Clara next to him in the hotel bed, but the other side was empty. At last, John opened his eyes.

He spotted Clara’s silhouette by the open door and John instantly reached for the duvet to pull it over his bare chest. Clara, dressed only in her robe, was chatting to her father thought the cracked door. The worries of having been caught by her parents were quickly pushed aside when John remembered that they already knew, but still, it didn’t mean that John was comfortable with having been caught.

Finally, Clara said goodbye to her father and closed the door, a smile appearing on her face when she looked back at John and realised that he had woken up. “Good morning,” she said happily. “My dad just stopped by to tell us that breakfast is served.”

His stomach reacted to the news in an instant, answering with a rumbling sound that reminded John how hungry he was. And yet… his appetite hadn’t really caught on yet. As John watched Clara get dressed, a question popped into his mind, a question he wasn’t sure he could ask right now. Last night, everything had been crystal clear, but now that the cloak of night had lifted, John realised that they hadn’t actually talked at all. He still had no idea where he stood with her. Was it some kind of casual fun? Was it serious? Would it go beyond their little scheme?

John only realised he had been staring at her when Clara began to return his gaze and started to laugh. “Didn’t get a good enough look last night?”

Her laugh was contagious, so John began to chuckle as well. “It was kind of dark,” he argued with a shrug. “Much better in daylight.”

Giggling, Clara skipped forward and pressed a brief kiss to his lips. “Get dressed,” she ordered him. “I’m starving.”


	30. Chapter 30

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *big group hug* Thank you for your lovely comments! You seem relieved that Clara and John are finally together, but they're still idiots, aren't they? ;)
> 
> Giving you this chapter a little early as I won't be home tomorrow and don't want to forget another update XD

As soon as she had exited the school building, Clara drew the phone out of her pocket to see whether there were any messages from John, knowing that this time, it was bound to be different. This time, they had done more than just kiss and she was sure to find a message from him in her inbox. However, Clara was soon disappointed by the distinct lack of messages. Once again, John hadn’t texted her.

Clara groaned as she dropped her arm and headed towards the nearest Tube station, cursing herself for not insisting that they would talk. She had wanted to in that hotel room, she had wanted to talk about the kiss, about her feelings, she had wanted to ask what John felt and still, she had no idea where she stood with him, no idea whatsoever. Right now, Clara was almost mad enough to drive to his place and ask him as bluntly as humanly possible so as not to create another misunderstanding.

Yet Clara didn’t even have a chance to think about her plan further when her phone started to ring and the brief flicker of hope that it might be John vanished as soon as she spotted the unfamiliar number on her display. It wasn’t John and somehow, Clara got the distinct impression that she wasn’t going to like whatever she was about to hear.

“Clara Oswald speaking?” she answered the phone, heading further towards the Underground station as she spoke.

“This is the King’s College Hospital, you’re speaking to Dr Heston.”

Clara’s heart skipped a beat and from one moment to the next, images flashed in front of her inner eye, images of her family and friends and she uttered a silent prayer for them to be alright.

“There’s no need to worry, Miss Oswald,” the doctor reassured her quickly. “Your mother-in-law was taken to us this morning and she’s ready to be discharged, but we couldn’t reach her children and we need someone to come and pick her up.”

“My what?” Clara blurted out immediately. “Are you sure you’ve got the right number?”

“It’s the one Mrs Smith gave us,” the doctor replied. “Do you not know her?”

Finally, something in her brain clicked. “Elise Smith?” Clara asked carefully, dearly hoping that she had remembered the name of John’s mother correctly.

“That’s the name of our patient, yes. She said you’re her daughter-in-law and to try your number if we absolutely couldn’t reach her son or daughter.”

Clara nodded to herself even though the doctor couldn’t see it. “Sort of. Her son and I aren’t married. Is she alright?”

“She is,” he confirmed. “Your mother-in-law sprained her wrist this morning. We did an x-ray to confirm that nothing is broken and she’s ready to go back home now, but given her age, we can’t just let her leave on her own.”

“I understand,” Clara said, exhaling sharply. “I’ll be there in half an hour.”

“I’ll let Mrs Smith know.”

“Thank you.”

Clara hung up, slipped the phone back into her pocket and entered the Tube station, but as she walked, something occurred to her. If John had given her number to his mother, it meant that he trusted her. Clara groaned one last time before she stepped on the train, vowing to talk to John because she was sick and tired of trying to read his signs.

 

Elise Smith sat at a table at the far end of the cafeteria and waved as soon as Clara came into view. She waved back, smiling, and even though she had been slightly angry at John for his lack of messages and forwarding her number to his mother, that anger faded as soon as she saw Elise. Even though they had only met once before, Clara was incredibly fond of the old woman.

“I’m sorry they had to call you,” John’s mother apologised as soon as she had reached the table. She got up slowly and Clara noticed the bandage around her left wrist at which her anger suddenly faded completely. “John is probably still at work and I don’t even want to know where Missy is. Thank you for coming to pick me up.”

Clara smiled at the old woman and offered to carry her handbag. “Not a problem,” she reassured her. “Gives me an excuse to take a taxi home. That’s a luxury I don’t normally get to experience.”

After signing the discharge papers and Clara reassuring the nurse that she would take Mrs Smith home straight away, they left the hospital and approached the parking area where a taxi would pick them up shortly.

“Will you need help with anything after you get home?” Clara asked, nodded towards Mrs Smith’s bandaged hand.

“Don’t worry.” Elise Smith waved it off. “It’s just a sprain and we’ve got staff at the home to help us. But thank you for picking me up. The silly hospital thought I was senile and couldn’t find my own way home.”

Clara chuckled in response, knowing that John’s mother was anything but senile. For her age, she was in incredibly good shape. While they waited, Clara couldn’t help herself and looked at her phone once again, hoping to find a message from John, but still, her display remained empty. For a moment, she considered giving John a little scare by telling him she had picked his mother up from the hospital, but she quickly thought better of it.

“If you’re waiting for a message from John, you’ll probably wait for another five years,” his mother suddenly said.

Clara’s head shot up, wondering how on earth she had been able to tell, but Elise Smith merely smiled knowingly. From one moment to the next, Clara felt a creeping suspicion, a bad feeling that was slowly spreading through her stomach, turning it over until she was properly nauseous. John’s mother knew. Clara had no idea how she had found out or why she was still smiling, but for some reason, she could just tell.

“Missy told me,” Mrs Smith announced. There was no anger in her voice even though she had been tricked. “I mean, I had a suspicion because, during our last conversation, John still insisted that he didn’t need a woman in his life and suddenly, there you were. I knew something was up.”

Clara inhaled deeply, wondering how on earth she could explain it to her, but all she could think of was how much she didn’t want to disappoint the old woman. “It’s complicated,” Clara replied for lack of anything else to say.

Elise Smith made a dismissive gesture. “For some reason, it always is with my children.”

“I, uh-,” Clara paused, but then, she decided it was time for some honesty. If she couldn’t be honest with John, at least, she could be honest with his mother. “I’m in love with him. John is one of the kindest and sweetest men I’ve ever met, but I’m not sure he feels the same way.”

To her surprise, John’s mother began to chuckle. “As I’ve said, if you’re waiting for John to make a move, you’ll be waiting until you’re my age. I love my son, but he’s pretty much useless when it comes to that,” Elise Smith said, the amusement audible in her voice. “But I know him well enough to tell that he’s in love with you, too.”

Still not entirely convinced, Clara raised her eyebrows in question. “I’m not so sure about that. We’ve had so many opportunities to talk about… us, but we never did. I never know what’s going on inside his head.”

Mrs Smith’s laughter grew louder and Clara was surprised when the old woman reached out and took her hand. It was a simple gesture, but a comforting one. “You want my advice?” she asked, but continued before Clara could agree. “Be as plain as you possibly can. John is rubbish with hints.”

Finally, Clara allowed herself to smile as well because she realised that his mother was right. Out of every human being on this planet, she probably knew John best and it wasn’t as if she had anything to lose. After his parents’ birthday party, they would never see each other again - unless Clara took the initiative. And she already had the perfect plan.


	31. Chapter 31

John and Susan waited in the car, following Clara’s distinct instructions. He had wanted to be a gentleman and pick her up at her doorstep, but Clara had insisted that she would need another moment to get ready and that they were better off waiting downstairs until she had finished putting her make-up on. John felt confused and it seemed to be his default state these days because everything Clara said or did confused him. She hadn’t mentioned what had happened at the wedding with a single word and even though he had called her two days later and Clara had acted in her usual friendly manner, John had been too scared to open up the subject. Apparently, she was determined to pretend as if nothing had ever happened and John wasn’t sure how he felt about it.

Suddenly, he became increasingly aware of his daughter staring at him from the back seat, smiling mischievously.

“What?” he wanted to know, their eyes meeting in the rear view mirror.

Susan shrugged. “Nothing,” she hummed. “Just wondering whether you’re going to ask Clara out on a proper date after tonight.”

John furrowed his brows at his daughter. “You do realise Clara and I are only pretending to date?”

Another shrug. “Doesn’t mean it has to stay that way. I like her.”

And he liked her, too - very much so - but the situation was too complicated to explain to his teenage daughter. One day, she would understand.

John didn’t have a chance to deny the possibility when he watched Clara exit the building in front of him and his heart skipped a little beat and ached at the same time. She looked so beautiful today in her light summer dress, with her curly hair and even though he tried not to think about it, John couldn’t help but remember that tonight might be the last time he ever saw her. Tonight, their clever arrangement would come to an end, releasing Clara from her promise to play his girlfriend.

With a smile on her face that almost broke his heart, Clara stepped inside the car and greeted him with a kiss on the cheek. His body froze in an instant.

“Hey John, hi Susie,” Clara said excitedly, waving towards the backseat. “How did that English essay go?”

Susan grinned proudly. “I got an A,” she announced.

The fact that his daughter and Clara had talked behind his back struck John as a little odd, but he didn’t get a word in before Clara continued.

“Very good,” Clara said. “I told you the topic would be a hit.”

Something was off, John could feel it, but it was a different something than what had bugged him the last time. Clara was almost too cheerful, too excited and that smile on her face looked almost as if she was up to something. Oh, how he wished that he could read her mind.

When he started the car and looked into the rear view mirror, he briefly met Susan’s eyes and his daughter was winking at him which was anything but helpful.

“I hope your mother is feeling better,” Clara said once they had driven for a while.

John turned to look at her for a brief moment, frowning. “How did you know she was unwell?”

“The hospital called me to pick her up when they couldn’t reach you or Missy,” she explained in a nonchalant manner, but what she said suddenly sent his heart racing.

Clara and his mother had talked. And God only knew what about.

“Oh, uh, did she… uh, say anything?”

Next to him, Clara shook her head. “No, not really,” she replied in a voice that told John they had definitely talked about him, but Clara was never going to admit that.

 

His parents had booked a small venue right next to the care home and once they arrived, John immediately spotted Missy and Lucy talking to his mother in front of the building. Even from afar, he could already tell that his mother was happy with the recent development and maybe, the reunion of Missy and her wife would make the story of his own future break-up a little easier on his parents. They stepped out of the car, Susan running off towards the rest of the family to greet them immediately while John and Clara stayed behind a little.

“Thank you for picking up my mother from the hospital, by the way,” John said while he retrieved the present from the back seat, realising that he hadn’t properly thanked Clara for helping out.

“Not a problem,” she replied with a smile. It looked so sincere that it left John with little doubt that she actually meant it. “I like your mother. She’s very sweet.”

That smile was an enigma to John. She looked so honest and yet as if she was up to something. Whatever it was, he was sure to find out this evening.

“Shall we?” John asked, holding out his arm for Clara to take and she did so with a broad grin.

John ignored Missy’s suggestive glances, he ignored how friendly Clara and his mother were with each other, he ignored Susan glancing towards them still holding hands and somehow, it felt as if he was the outsider. John and Clara had a pact, one that not everyone was in on, but right now, it seemed to him as if he was at the centre of a conspiracy that everyone else knew about - everyone but him. It was in the way people looked at him, in the way Clara acted like his perfect girlfriend, in the way she and his mother exchanged laughs. Something was going on and he would figure out what that was.

However, John didn’t really have a chance when everyone started to move inside and he was shuffled towards the buffet and handed a glass of champagne.

“That is a lovely dress, Clara,” Missy complimented her. Her wife nodded in agreement. “I can only imagine how beautiful you would look in a wedding dress.”

John almost choked on his champagne, but he quickly covered up the awkwardness by suppressing a cough. Naturally, Missy would use the opportunity to put him on the spot.

“Darling, don’t say something like that. You know that John and Clara have only just met,” Lucy scolded her immediately. “I’m sure they’re not going to talk about marriage for at least another year.”

“Of course,” his sister replied instantly. “I’m just saying that it’s an event I’m very much looking forward to.”

To his great surprise, Clara smiled at his sister and her wife and when she turned her head, the smile was directed at him as well and it looked as if the statement didn’t bother her even a little bit. John should really say something before his family made it even more awkward for Clara.

“Lucy is right,” Clara agreed in a friendly manner. “It’s a little early, but it doesn’t hurt to dream about fancy dresses.”

“Or siblings,” Susan threw in, grinning broadly. “I’ve always wanted a little brother or sister.”

“Oh, I would love more grandchildren,” his mother agreed in an instant, her eyes almost brimming over with excitement.

Something was definitely off and it wasn’t just Clara. Everyone else was involved, too, and by now, John had had enough of the charade. He needed to know what was going on.

“Clara, can we talk privately for a second?” he whispered into her ear, but he wasn’t quiet enough to hide it from everyone else.

Missy gasped. “Oh my God, you’re not pregnant already, are you?”

“Talk. Now,” John insisted, reaching for Clara’s arm and pulling her away from the other guests.

 

They walked to the far end of the hall and John grew a little more nervous with every step, unsure of what he was going to say to Clara. He couldn’t just accuse her of planning something behind his back, he couldn’t just ask her what was going on between them or between her and the rest of the family. What _could_ he say?

When they came to a halt by the window, John finally turned to look at Clara and he found that she was still smiling. Whatever was happening, it amused her greatly - at his expense.

“What’s going on here?” he demanded to know, not knowing what else to say.

In response, Clara chuckled. “I’m just wondering when you’re going to ask me, that’s all.”

“Ask you what?!”

The smile didn’t fade from her lips, but it transformed into something else. The amusement vanished, but it left behind a kindness, a look that seemed almost like love. “Your mother told me you’re in love with me, your sister pretty much confirmed it and apparently, your daughter would very much like me to be your proper girlfriend.”

John’s heart sank into his boots. Had they all worked together to make him look like a fool?

“I’m in love with you, too,” Clara confessed, her smile widening again. “So I was wondering whether you were going to ask me to be in a proper relationship or-”

The words sank in slowly, but John was beginning to understand and his heart grew a little lighter when the realisation finally dawned on him.

“Are you saying that’s what you want?” John asked, the happiness already showing in his voice.

Clara grinned, but at the same time, she rolled her eyes. “Do I need to spell it out or will a kiss suffice?”

John couldn’t help it. From one moment to the next, he just felt like laughing and when he bent down to kiss Clara, breaking and sealing their pact with a simple gesture, he was no longer mad about the trick everyone had played on him. He was only happy.

 

**The End**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys so, so, so much for reading and leaving all those wonderful comments :) I know, I haven't been very reliable with posting with everything that has been going on lately, but it has been good things (like finishing my apprenticeship and finding a new job that starts in October), so I hope you can forgive me and that you enjoyed this story :) I've also got a new Doctor Who fanfic in store for you, so stay tuned for that one soon-ish :D


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